During the third public hearing of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, it was revealed that President Trump’s lawyer John Eastman told Rudy Giuliani after the riot that he wanted to be included on the presidential pardon list.

Video transcript

PETE AGUILAR: White House attorney Eric Hershmann testified that the next day, January 7, he received a call from Dr. Eastman. Here is Mr. Herschmann's account of that call.

ERIC HERSCHMANN: The day after, Eastman-- I don't remember why he called me and-- or he texted me or called me, wanted to talk with me, and he said he couldn't reach others. And he started to ask me about something dealing with Georgia and preserving something potentially for appeal. And I said to him, are you out of your effing mind?

I said, I only want to hear two words coming out of your mouth from now on-- orderly transition. And I just screamed, I said, I don't want to hear any other effing words coming out of your mouth, no matter what, other than orderly transition. Repeat those words to me. And I screamed that. And he said--

- What did he say?

ERIC HERSCHMANN: Eventually, he said orderly transition. I said, good, John. Now, I'm going to give you the best free legal advice you're ever getting in your life. Get a great effing criminal defense lawyer. You're going to need it. And then I hung up on him.

PETE AGUILAR: In fact, just a few days later, Dr. Eastman emailed Rudy Giuliani and requested that he be included on a list of potential recipients of a presidential pardon. Dr. Eastman's email stated, quote, "I've decided that I should be on the pardon list, if that is still in the works." Dr. Eastman did not receive his presidential pardon. So let's see what Dr. Eastman did as a result, when he was deposed by this committee.

JOHN EASTMAN: I assert my Fifth Amendment right against being compelled to be a witness against myself.

- Did the Trump legal team ask you to prepare a memorandum regarding the vice president's role in the counting of electoral votes at the joint session of Congress on January 6, 2021?

JOHN EASTMAN: Fifth.

- Dr. Eastman, did you advise the president of the United States that the vice president could reject electors from seven states and declare that the president had been re-elected?

JOHN EASTMAN: Fifth.

- Dr. Eastman, the first sentence of the memo starts off by saying seven states have transmitted dual slates of electors to the president of the Senate. Is that statement in this memo true?

JOHN EASTMAN: Fifth.

- Did President Trump authorize you to discuss publicly your January 4, 2021, conversation with him?

JOHN EASTMAN: Fifth.

- Are-- so is it your position that you can discuss in the media direct conversations you had with the president of the United States, but you will not discuss those same conversations with this committee?

JOHN EASTMAN: Fifth.

PETE AGUILAR: Dr. Eastman pled the Fifth 100 times.