According to Business Insider, aides say that President Donald Trump was detached, "mentally unreachable," and and ignored their pleas during the storming of the US Capitol building on Wednesday.
An official told The Washington Post that the president has "this notion that he's been treated unfairly." People close to Trump said that they were "certain the president wanted this and is enjoying it." The violent attack forced members of Congress to hide and flee temporarily from the Capitol, while in the process of certifying Joe Biden's election victory.
Trump stayed in the White House and defended his supporters, while refusing to condemn the violence.
Trump's aides urged him to issue a strong statement against the rioters' violence, but he was "ignoring these entreaties." An official described Trump as "a total monster," and others were "avoiding him like the plague."