- Former Trump White House lawyer Ty Cobb thinks Trump gave "aid and comfort" to Capitol rioters.
- He said a tweet calling out Pence and the three hours of inactivity alone on that day are proof.
Former President Donald Trump's White House lawyer Ty Cobb said he believes Trump gave "aid and comfort to the insurrectionists" during the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
"The Pence tweet, coupled with the three hours of inaction, in my view, easily fits into the definition of giving aid and comfort to the insurrectionists," Cobb told CNN's Erin Burnett on Tuesday, referring to a tweet Trump posted on January 6, 2021, in which he called out former Vice President Mike Pence for not certifying the 2020 election results in his favor.
Cobb then said that Article III of the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution — which prohibits those who have been involved in an insurrection against the country's government from holding public office — is something "Congress has at its disposal."
"I don't for the life of me understand why, instead of telling the Justice Department what to do, why [Congress isn't] acting on that alone," Cobb said. "The penalty of finding Trump guilty of giving aid and comfort to an insurrectionist is disqualification from office."
When asked by Burnett whether Trump's defense of believing the 2020 election was stolen from him will hold up, Cobb said he doesn't think so.
"I think that's very damaging for someone who wants to argue willful blindness," Cobb said.
He continued: "I also think that while Trump may argue that defense, I think he is more likely to use the trial in an effort to deal with his themes — that he's all-powerful, he got cheated, and he's the only one standing up for the country."
The January 6 House Select Committee is currently investigating the role that Trump played in the insurrection.