Washington: Even as riots unfolded at US Capitol building, President Donald Trump and his attorney Rudy Giuliani made phone calls to Republican Senators to delay the counting of the Electoral College votes last Wednesday (local time), reported CNN.
While Trump worked to convince Tuberville, the newly elected Republican from Alabama, he and other top White House officials did little to check in on Vice President Mike Pence and his family members who were inside the breached Capitol, a source close to the vice president told CNN.
Trump made the call to Utah Republican Lee around 2 pm (local time) on Wednesday. At that time the senators had been evacuated from the Senate floor and were in a temporary holding room, as a pro-Trump mob began breaching the Capitol.
Lee picked up the phone and Trump identified himself, and it became clear he was looking for Tuberville and had been given the wrong number.
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Later, Lee handed the call to Tuberville, who spoke to Trump for ten minutes. Trump tried to convince him to make additional objections to the Electoral College vote in a futile effort to block Congress' certification of President-elect Joe Biden's win, according to a source familiar with the call. The call was cut off because senators were asked to move to a secure location.
The second call to Lee came at 7 pm (local time) on Wednesday from Giuliani which went to voicemail as Lee did not answer.
