Two of Donald Trump's supporters who had a hand in organizing rallies in Washington, DC on the day of the Capitol riot claim they had help from several House Republicans and other members in the former president's orbit, a bombshell new report claimed on Sunday.
They're two of the people who are currently communicating with investigators on the House January 6 committee, providing them with potentially groundbreaking new information, Rolling Stone reported.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, the two rally planners told the outlet that they had regular to frequent communication with White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Trump campaign aide Katrina Pierson.
The pair also detailed damning allegations that one lawmaker, Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, dangled the possibility of a pardon in front of their faces for an unrelated probe in a bid to force them into planning rallies.
The two House witnesses also claim to have took part in 'dozens' of briefings with members of Congress and their staff leading up to January 6 riot.
'I remember talking to probably close to a dozen other members at one point or another or their staffs,' one person said, adding that pro-Trump freshman Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia played a key role.
'I remember Marjorie Taylor Greene specifically.'
The new report details allegations made by two January 6 Trump rally organizers who are working with the House committee investigating the riot
Also named in the report were Reps. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Mo Brooks of Alabama, Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina, Andy Biggs of Arizona and Louie Gohmert of Texas.
The sources claimed those representatives or their staffers were in contact with activists planning pro-Trump demonstrations across the country in the weeks before the riot.
One of them recalled speaking with Boebert, Cawthorn and Gosar's staffs 'back to back to back.'
But it was only Gosar who they claim tried to strongarm them into planning pro-Trump events, by offering to intervene in a separate law enforcement investigation - but the bargain never materialized.
Some of the most damning claims involve Rep. Paul Gosar, who the organizers claim dangled an unrelated pardon over their heads to encourage them to plan their rallies
Gosar has been one of Trump's most vocal supporters in Congress. He was billed at a speaker for another January 6 rally, the Wild Protest, whose organizer Ali Alexander named as one of three lawmakers who helped him plan how to 'put maximum pressure on Congress while they were voting' to certify the election results.
The other two were Biggs and Brooks.
One of the organizers said Gosar made it seem like 'he'd spoken to the president about it in the Oval… in a meeting about pardons and that our names came up.'
'They were working on submitting the paperwork and getting members of the House Freedom Caucus to sign on as a show of support.'
They added, 'Our impression was that it was a done deal.'
The House Freedom Caucus is chaired by Biggs, one of the lawmakers accused in the report.
But the pair said Gosar offered a 'blanket pardon' on multiple occasions.
Once, they claim he said: 'I was just going over the list of pardons and we just wanted to tell you guys how much we appreciate all the hard work you’ve been doing.'
The organizers expressed disappointment that the dentist-turned-lawmaker never followed up on his promise.
'I would have done it either way with or without the pardon,' one person said. 'I do truly believe in this country, but to use something like that and put that out on the table when someone is so desperate, it’s really not good business.'
In Sunday's report Rolling Stone noted that it 'obtained documentary evidence' to support claims that Gosar and Boebert were in contact with them.
An earlier report from April claimed that Gosar had asked Trump for a pre-emptive pardon over the events of January 6.
House Freedom Caucus chair Rep. Andy Biggs and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are among two of the lawmakers specifically named by the organizers
Gosar's chief of staff Thomas Van Flein was one of those subpoenaed by the House for documents and communications on the riot. The two sources claim Val Flein was 'personally involved' in the pardon conversation and promoted baseless election fraud theories.
The two Trump rally organizers say Mark Meadows, who was also subpoenaed by the House, could have prevented the violence that broke out that day.
'Meadows was 100 percent made aware of what was going on,' one witness said. 'He’s also like a regular figure in these really tiny groups of national organizers.'
He's one of four people 'with close ties to the former president' who the bipartisan House panel is interested in hearing from, in addition to Steve Bannon, former White House aide Dan Scavino and former Pentagon official Kash Patel.
Both people said they raised concerns to Meadows over Ali Alexander's planned Wild Protest at the Capitol, which they worried had the potential to result in violence.
They claim Alexander 'plowed forward' with his event despite 'making a deal' not to.
'We ended up escalating that to everybody we could, including Meadows,' one person said.
The report details allegations from a 'separate third source' working with the House committee who said Trump rally organizer Kylie Kremer 'boasted that she was going to meet with Meadows at the White House ahead of the rally.'
The witnesses allege that Katrina Pierson, who worked for Trump's 2016 and 2020 campaigns and also spoke at the January 6 rally, was a 'primary' contact for them who also had the president's ear.
They described Pierson as 'our go-to girl.'
Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former Trump campaign aide Katrina Pierson were also named as having communicated with rally organizers
'She was like our primary advocate,' they said.
But the most extensive allegations in the report detail the alleged extent to which members of Congress communicated with pro-Trump activists ahead of the insurrection.
Between the election and the certification, the two planners claim members of Congress and their staff gave advice on which rallies to hold states in in order to put 'pressure' on potentially 'persuadable' senators.
However, despite the chaotic way the day unfolded, the organizers maintain that 'the Capitol was never in place' and that the demonstrations were solely aimed at being outside the White House.
They said it was planned in a 'variety of calls' between them and Gosar, Greene and Brooks.
The Wild Protest, whose event website lists Gosar as a speaker along with Greene, Boebert and Trump ally Roger Stone, was scheduled to take place on the Capitol lawn.
Greene's office told Rolling Stone, 'Congresswoman Greene and her staff were focused on the Congressional election objection on the House floor and had nothing to do with planning of any protest.'
The two witnesses implied that it was pro-Trump activist Ali Alexander's rally at the Capitol that led to the violent insurrection
One of the organizers who spoke with the outlet said he wants to go public with their allegations.
'I have no problem openly testifying,' they said.
The other person said they want the House committee to 'uncover the truth about what happened at the Capitol that day.'
'It's clear that a lot of bad actors set out to cause chaos,' the person complained. 'They made us all look like s**t.'
They claim that on January 6, once Trump asked his supports to march on the Capitol, their reaction was one of 'let's get the f**k out of here.'
That day, the ex-president encouraged his supporters to 'fight like hell' and at one point said, 'I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.'
Both witnesses have also said they still support Trump but feel betrayed by him
They accused Democrats of using 'tactics to disrupt their political opposition in ways that frankly were completely unacceptable' including social media censorship and changes to voting requirements in light of the COVID pandemic.
Of the ex-president, they said: 'I do feel kind of abandoned by Trump.'
'I'm actually pretty pissed about it and I'm pissed at him,' the person said.
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