“I’ve seen the impact that his words have on his supporters. They truly latch on to every word and every tweet that he says,” she said.

“And so I think that in that moment for him to tweet about Mike Pence,it was him pouring gasoline on the fire and making it much worse.”

Pottinger also resigned that day,telling the committee:“I was disturbed and worried to see that the president was attacking vice president Pence for doing his constitutional duty. So the tweet looked to me like the opposite of what we really needed at that moment,which was a de-escalation”.

By the time Trump urged his supporters to go home shortly after 4pm on January 6,two pipe bombs had been found at locations near the Capitol,including where elected Vice President Kamala Harris was conducting a meeting,the committee found.

Hours of “hand-to-hand combat” had taken place between rioters and multiple law enforcement officers,Congressional members had to be temporarily evacuated,and one rioter was shot attempting to infiltrate the chamber.

But instead of calling any law enforcement or national security agencies to assist,Trump was phoning Republican senators in a last-ditch attempt to get them to throw the election his way.

The committee also played new and chilling audio from the Secret Service agents assigned to Pence on the day. They could be heard communicating on radio saying they feared for their own lives.

According to an anonymous security official,whose voice was disguised for his interview with the panel,some were also calling family members to say goodbye,uncertain that they would return from the Capitol.

“It was chaos,” he told the committee.

Video clips were also played from interviews with former Trump White House officials,including former national security adviser Keith Kellogg and former White House counsel Pat Cipollone,who were asked about Trump’s conduct while the Capitol building was being attacked.

They each stated that they did not see Trump make any attempt to stop the rioters bycalling in officials such as the Secretary of Defence,the US Attorney-General,or Homeland Security.

Among those who urged Trump to put a stop to the violence were his children Ivanka Trump and Don jnr,Fox News presenters Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham,and Republican members of Congress. Pat Cipollone told the committee he expressed his opinion “very forcefully” that something had to be done.

“I said,you know,people need to be told - there needs to be a public announcement,fast,that they need to leave the Capitol,” Cipollone told the committee.

“What happened at the Capitol cannot be justified in any form or fashion. It was wrong and it was tragic,” he added. “It was was a terrible day for this country.”

It wasn’t until 4.03pm that Trump finally gave in and recorded a video in the Rose Garden of the White House,urging his supporters to go home.

But the committee revealed the video he ultimately pushed out on Twitter - in which he told his supporters he loved them and they were “very special” - was,in fact,an “off-script” version of the statement his staff had suggested.

The scripted version of the statement was meant to say,in part:“I am asking you to leave the Capitol Hill region NOW and go home in a peaceful way.”

The committee also played outtakes of another video statement Trump made on January 7 that was supposed to criticise the violence,where he tells his daughter Ivanka and staff in the room:“I don’t want to say the election’s over.”

The prime-time event was the eighth and last public hearing before the committee returns in September to present more evidence.

It remains unclear whether the committee’s work could lead to a criminal indictment against the former president. While it has provided what it believes is enough evidence of a conspiracy to defraud the American people or potential obstruction,it would be up to Attorney-General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice whether to lay charges.

However,committee chairman Bennie Thompson,speaking via video link after testing positive for COVID-19,said “there can be no doubt that there was a coordinated effort” by Trump to unlawfully overthrow the election in a bid to remain in power,and as such,he should be held accountable.

“If there is no accountability for January 6 for every part of this scheme,I fear that we will not overcome the ongoing threat to our democracy. There must be stiff consequences,” he said.

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