Page:CTRL0000034600 - Transcribed Interview of Richard Peter Donoghue, (Oct. 1, 2021).pdf/32

32 All right. Now, did this come up—between the time that you were—that you talked to Attorney General Barr about the report and when you got the white paper from Homeland Security, did this come up in a meeting with the President in the Oval Office on December the 15th?

Yes, it did.

All right. So let's talk for a minute about that meeting. At this point, December 15th, Attorney General Barr is still in place, correct? He's announced that he's resigning, but he has not yet resigned?

That's right.

How did it end up that you went to a meeting at the White House on December the 15th? Tell us the circumstances that gave rise to that meeting.

I don't remember exactly how it was first communicated to me. I'm pretty sure it came from the DAG himself, that he came next door and said, you and I need to go over to the White House this afternoon. We had to get a COVID test in advance. So that was part of the procedures. We had to get over there in time to get a COVID test at the Executive Building next door. I forget what time the meeting was. It was mid-afternoon of some sort. And we traveled over there together. And DAG Rosen and I participated in the meeting in the Oval Office with a number of other people, and the Antrim County reports and allegation were discussed.

Who else was present, Mr. Donoghue, at that meeting?

I believe it was chief of staff, Mr. Meadows, White House Counsel Pat Cipillone, I think Deputy White House Counsel Pat Philbin was there, DAG Rosen, myself, someone from DHS named Chad Mizelle. I forget what his position was at that point.

Shortly after the meeting started, the chief of staff said that he had to work on something else, and he excused himself and he left. Also, shortly after the meeting