donald trump mark milley
Then-President Donald Trump speaks and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley in 2019.
  • Trump appeared to privately concede that he lost the election three days before January 6.
  • In a meeting with Gen. Mark Milley, Trump said "it's too late for us" and "we're going to give that to the next guy."
  • According to special counsel Jack Smith's indictment, Trump had been informed that Inauguration Day was fast approaching.

President Donald Trump told Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, that a national security issue would be left for "the next guy" days before January 6, an apparent concession that Joe Biden had won the election, according to special counsel Jack Smith's indictment.

"Yeah, you're right, it's too late for us," Trump told Milley and another unnamed advisor, according to the indictment. "We're going to give that to the next guy."