Mo Brooks blames Trump for his appearance at Capitol rally, saying he only spoke because the White House told him to

• Rep. Mo Brooks appeared to blame former President Donald Trump for his appearance at the January 6 Capitol rally.
• Brooks had told rally attendees that "today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass."
• His attorneys now say: "But for the White House request, Brooks would not have appeared."

Republican lawmaker Rep. Mo Brooks appeared to blame former President Donald Trump for his appearance at the Capitol rally of Trump supporters on January 6, with his attorneys insisting he only appeared because the White House had asked him to.

Brooks is defending himself in a civil case brought by Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who alleges that Brooks, among others, incited the January 6 insurrection by delivering a speech beforehand in which he said "today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass."

However, in a new civil filing reported by NBC4 reporter Scott MacFarlane, attorneys for Brooks claimed that he had only given the speech because he had been asked to by a member of the Trump administration.

"On January 5, 2021, Brooks was in Brooks' Congressional Office at the Rayburn House Office building when a White House employee contacted Brooks during regular office hours and asked Brooks to speak at the Ellipse Rally on January 6, 2021," the civil case filing said.

"Brooks only gave an Ellipse Speech because the White House asked him to, his capacity as a United States Congressman, speak at the Ellipse Rally. But for the White House request, Brooks would not have appeared at the Ellipse Rally."

Brooks has condemned the insurrection at the Capitol and denied that his behavior had any involvement with the violent scenes, which resulted in five people dying. Trump endorsed him for the GOP nomination in the race to replace Alabama Senator Richard Selby next year.

The filing represents Brooks' defense in a case that he allegedly sought to avoid for months. An attorney for Rep. Swalwell, who is also suing Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Rudy Giuliani for inciting the insurrection, said in May that they had resorted to hiring a private investigator to track down Brooks to serve him with the suit.

Brooks insisted that he had not avoided Swalwell. He was ultimately served with the lawsuit after a process server handed it to his wife at their home.

Brooks claimed last week that he was representing "the will" of his constituents when he delivered the speech on January 6.