The White House diaries and the 7-hour gap in Trump's day on Jan. 6, 2021

This week, CBS News and The Washington Post revealed that internal White House records from January 6, 2021 showed a more than seven-hour gap between President Donald Trump's phone calls. From 11:17 a.m. to 6:54 p.m., a time period that included the president's address at a "Stop the Steal" rally near White House grounds and the violent assault on the U.S. Capitol, the minute-by-minute record of the president's activities reflects no evidence of Trump making or receiving calls. 

In fact, there is no record of any activity between 1:21 p.m. and 4:03 p.m., when violence on Capitol Hill peaked. It has been widely reported that Trump spoke with allies like Senators Mike Lee and Tommy Tuberville and with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy during the attack.

By law, the president and White House officials are required to "adequately document" and maintain records of the president's "activities, deliberations, decisions, and policies." This responsibility was established in the Presidential Records Act of 1978.