Trump says he would have been “very well received” by the Jan. 6 mob at the Capitol and planned to go to stop the attack, but the Secret Service wouldn’t let him
Just months after the Jan. 6 mob at the Capitol, former President Donald Trump declared that he would have been “very well received” and would have gone to stop them from storming the building if the Secret Service had not intervened.
In a new recording of Trump’s March 18, 2021 interview with ABC News’ Jonathan Karl, Trump enthusiastically recounted what he believed might have happened that day.
“If you look at the actual size of this crowd, it was never reported correctly,” Trump said. “It was… it was by far the largest crowd I have ever spoken in front of. By a lot.’
Karl then noted that Trump — who faces trial on March 4 on charges of trying to overturn the election in Washington — told the crowd he was going to the Capitol, which led to Trump’s reception.
“I thought about coming back during the problem to solve it by doing it myself. The Secret Service didn’t really like the idea,” Trump said.
“I was going to, but the Secret Service said you can’t, and then… I would have already done it, and when I came back, I saw… I wanted to come back,” he said.
Just months after the January 6 Capitol mob, former President Donald Trump declared that he would have been “very well received” and would have left if the Secret Service had not intervened
According to CNN, Trump did not appear at the riots, and as a result, more than 1,000 people were charged that day in connection with their involvement.
The recording could be used against Trump at his trial next year.
Federal judge Tanya Chutkan has set a March 4 trial date for former Trump, who will face federal criminal charges in Washington, D.C., setting up a historic court battle ahead of the November election.
Both sides predicted that the trial itself could take four to six weeks, before the end of primary elections in a dozen states. This could result in a verdict six months before voters go to the polls in November 2024.
Trump is charged with conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, defraud the government and disenfranchise voters in a summary indictment stemming from his attempts to overturn the election.
The indictment accuses the defeated president and his allies of trying to “exploit violence and chaos” by calling lawmakers on the evening of January 6 to delay the certification of Biden’s victory.
He also cites former Vice President Mike Pence’s handwritten notes that support Trump’s relentless calls to reject electoral votes.
CNN reports that Trump did not show up at the riot, which resulted in over 1,000 people being charged in connection with their involvement that day
Federal judge Tanya Chutkan has set a March 4 trial date for former Trump, who will face federal criminal charges in Washington over allegations that Trump tried to overturn the election
The indictment accuses the defeated president and his allies of attempting to “exploit violence and chaos” by summoning lawmakers on the evening of January 6 to delay the certification of Biden’s victory
Pence rejected proposals from the House panel that investigated the insurrection and sought to avoid testifying before the special counsel.
He appeared only after losing the court fight and prosecutors learned that Trump had ridiculed him in one conversation as “too honest” to withhold his testimony.
The Trump campaign called the allegations “false” and questioned why it took two and a half years to make them.
the former president faces numerous charges that may make it difficult for him to return to the presidency.
In the poll released Thursday, Trump still leads potential rival President Joe Biden in 2024, 52 to 48 percent.
