During the Sunday, February 2 broadcast of CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” the same show that President Donald Trump is suing over an editing scandal involving Kamala Harris during the election, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) snapped about President Donald Trump and said he is still at odds with him over the January 6, 2021, Capitol protest and trespass.
That came when the host, Lesley Stahl, asked him about his relationship with the newly inaugurated president. She asked, “How would you describe your relationship with President Trump?” Sen. McConnell told her they haven’t spoken because of how upset he was about J6. He said, “Well, we haven’t spoken for quite a while. I was very upset about what happened January 6.”
Stahl then made the day sound terrifying to the elderly senator, saying that he had to be evacuated and his office door was banged on. She said, “You had to be evacuated from the Senate along with other leaders. Your staff was in your office. The rioters were banging on your door. Someone with a flagpole broke a window into your office.”
McConnel then said, commenting on his staff’s frantic reaction to the trespass, “Yeah. Well, my staff in the Capitol was putting furniture up against the doors.” Stahl asked, “To prevent them from coming–” McConnell snapped, “To prevent the rioters from outside from breaking the doors and getting at them. And what was it about?”
He then made the protest and trespass sound like a coup, ignoring the allegations of fraud during 2020 and saying, “To try to prevent the orderly transfer of government, which had never happened in our country.” Stahl said, “Your staff, after the crisis was over, you went and spoke with them. You– it was a highly emotional situation. You remember?”
McConnell told her, “Oh, I remember well.” Stahl asked, “Do you remember what you told them?” McConnell said, “That– Yeah, I remember what I told them.” The show then played what he said at the time: “President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day.” McConnell added, “That’s the way I still feel about it.”
Stahl then asked about the effort to change the public perception and memory of what happened on J6, saying, “What are your views on President Trump and his supporters trying to change what happened on January 6? They’re calling it a ‘day of love.’ They called the rioters ‘martyrs.'”
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McConnel freaked out, declaring that the day’s protest was really an “insurrection.” He said, “Yeah. No, it– it was an insurrection.” Stahl then asked about the pardons, saying, “What about the pardons for the people who stormed the Capitol that day?” McConnell, backing off a marginal bit, said, “I– I think pardoning the people who’ve been convicted is a mistake.” Watch him here:
McConnell has also come out against the Trump Administration’s tariff plans recently, attacking the president for trying to protect America and saying, “It will drive the cost of everything up. In other words, it will be paid for by American consumers. I mean, why would you want to get into a fight with your allies over this?”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video