Hope Hicks, who was a top adviser to former President Donald Trump, told an aide to Ivanka Trump that “we all look like domestic terrorists now” as the Capitol riot unfolded on Jan. 6, 2021.
In texts released by the House Jan. 6 committee, Hicks expressed concern about the consequences of Trump’s actions to Julie Radford, who was then Ivanka Trump’s chief of staff.
“In one day he ended every future opportunity that doesn’t include speaking engagements at the local proud boys chapter,” Hicks said, appearing to refer to the then-president.
“Yup,” Radford replied.
“And all of us that didn’t have jobs lined up will be perpetually unemployed,” Hicks continued.
"I'm so mad and upset," she wrote. “We all look like domestic terrorists now.”
Hicks also appeared to refer to former Trump communications director Alyssa Farah Griffin's resignation from the White House in December 2020, saying she “looks like a genius.”
Hicks and Radford also texted about the resignation of Stephanie Grisham, who was former first lady Melania Trump's chief of staff, on the day of the Capitol attack — a move Radford seemed to criticize as “self serving.”
They went on to talk about Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump’s in-law Karlie Kloss, a supermodel, who took aim at the then-president in a series of tweets on Jan. 6 for his refusal to accept the 2020 election results.
“Unreal,” Radford responded after Hicks shared Kloss’ tweets.
The text exchange is included in the release of documents after the committee released its formal report late last month. In its report, the committee detailed evidence that Trump oversaw a multipart effort to overturn the results of an election he knew he lost, which culminated in his supporters’ storming the Capitol on Jan. 6 in a push to block the counting of the electoral votes that would certify Joe Biden’s victory.
The report came after the panel unanimously voted to recommend that the Justice Department pursue criminal charges against Trump over his role in the attack and his efforts to upend the 2020 election.
Hicks, whom the committee interviewed in October, was one of Trump’s close confidants in the White House, serving multiple senior roles. She left the White House several days after the Jan. 6 insurrection after having been a counselor to the president. She previously was White House communications director, as well as director of strategic communications.
Before she joined the Trump White House, Hicks worked for Trump’s presidential campaign, the Trump Organization and Ivanka Trump’s fashion brand.