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Former senior advisor to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Cassidy Hutchinson, found herself in the midst of the Capitol Hill assault by Trump supporters, an event that aimed to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power. Hutchinson’s testimony before the January 6 Committee shed light on the actions of former President Donald Trump, shocking even the most experienced Washington observers. In her upcoming book “Enough,” published by Simon & Schuster on Tuesday, she recounts her experience. Read an excerpt below and don’t miss the CBS News Sunday Morning interview with Cassidy Hutchinson, conducted by Tracy Smith, on September 24.
“Enough” by Cassidy Hutchinson
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Prologue
How did I end up here? What had I done to find myself in this predicament, thrust into a Washington political scandal, struggling to maintain my composure under the glare of television lights while becoming, depending on your political affiliation, momentarily famous or infamous?
The Cannon Caucus Room is one of the largest and most impressive rooms in any of the House office buildings. With its ornate high ceilings and chandeliers, it resembles a Hollywood set designed to transform the often cramped and dreary reality of government office space into a magnificent hall of power. As Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming would later note during a subsequent hearing, this room had been the site of historic discussions about granting women the right to vote a century earlier. Cheney remarked, “In this room in 1918, the Committee on Woman Suffrage convened to discuss and debate whether women should be granted the right to vote.” I estimate that its generous dimensions could comfortably accommodate five hundred or more people.
On June 28, 2022, accompanied by my lawyers, I made my way through the back of the chamber and followed a security-cleared path to the witness table, passing a row of US Capitol Police officers. Not a single seat was empty. House staffers who couldn’t find a seat stood against the walls. Photojournalists crowded around the table, capturing every moment. I blinked, trying to adjust my eyes to the bright lights needed for the live feed provided by the numerous C-SPAN cameras broadcasting to news networks. I had hoped to arrive at the same time as the committee members, avoiding the prolonged, awkward minutes of being photographically scrutinized. But the seconds dragged on agonizingly slow as I waited for the hearing to commence.
The atmosphere was electric, to say the least. Everyone in the room—committee members, reporters, spectators—could sense that something dramatic and significant was about to unfold. And so could I, the sole witness for the hearing. The committee had meticulously planned its previous five hearings. This one, however, felt rushed, likely due to concerns for my safety, as news reports suggested, and the fear that I might back out at the last minute. And I just might have. I had experienced sporadic panic over the past twenty-four hours. The night before, I had pleaded with my lawyers, Jody Hunt and Bill Jordan, insisting that I wasn’t ready and needed more time. I had even threatened to leave during the car ride to the hearing, as well as when I peered out from the holding room into the bustling hearing room. As I glanced up at the select committee members towering above me on the dais, I could feel myself trembling and dreaded that someone would notice. I could sense that my necklace wasn’t straight, exactly as my mom had warned, so I discreetly straightened it, aware that every movement I made could be analyzed.
When the hearing ended, media reports portrayed me as composed and collected. A columnist for The Washington Post described me as having “a preternatural poise.” And in truth, once the hearing began, my nerves settled quickly as Liz Cheney, whom I had grown to trust and admire, began her questioning. But before the gavel came down and Liz launched her inquiry, my nervousness had overwhelmed me.
I was a driven twenty-five-year-old conservative White House staffer who had held a position close to power. I had worked tirelessly to prove myself worthy. Now, I was about to give testimony in a high-stakes congressional hearing that I knew could harm, and potentially implicate, the former president of the United States. I would also alienate friends and former colleagues.
How did I end up here? Just before graduating from college, with several congressional and White House internships to my name, I shared my aspirations for the future with a student newspaper reporter. I wanted to “be an effective leader in the fight to secure the American dream for future generations,” I disclosed, “so that they too will have the abundant opportunities and freedoms that make the United States great.” Corny? Maybe. Presumptuous? Certainly. But I meant every word, and I would work tirelessly to fulfill that aspiration, to be of service to my country.
Prior to engaging my new lawyers, I had at times concealed part of the truth from a congressional committee tasked with investigating a matter of utmost national importance, a matter that posed a threat to America’s future greatness. I had withheld information about events I had witnessed or that had been recounted to me by witnesses. Those events had led to the appalling attack on the United States Congress, an institution I hold dear, and endangered the continued success of American democracy. My conscience was burdened, and I ultimately made the decision, in parliamentary language, to clarify and expand on my testimony. That’s the short answer. That’s why I found myself there.
The long answer, the story of how I arrived at this point, is a bit more intricate and takes longer to tell.
From “Enough” by Cassidy Hutchinson. Copyright © 2023 by Cassidy Hutchinson. Reprinted with permission from Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.
Get the book:
Buy “Enough” from your local bookstore or through Bookshop.org.
For more information:
“Enough” by Cassidy Hutchinson (Simon & Schuster), available in Hardcover, eBook, and Audio formats on September 26.
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