Former President Donald Trump expressed support for Jan. 6 Capitol riot protesters during a sometimes combative and wide-ranging CNN town hall with Kaitlan Collins on Wednesday night.
“I am inclined to pardon many of them,” Trump said of the protesters. “I can’t say for every single one because a couple of them probably — they got out of control.”
TRUMP AND PENCE HOLD DUELING TV EVENTS ONE DAY AFTER NEW YORK VERDICT
The former president also said those involved in the riot “thought the election was rigged,” as did Trump, who repeated false claims about the 2020 presidential election in which President Joe Biden defeated him.
“They were there with love in their heart. That was unbelievable. And it was a beautiful day,” Trump said in the hours before protesters ransacked the Capitol before pivoting to attacking former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
During the hourlong town hall, Trump refused to say he would apologize to his former vice president, Mike Pence, whom protesters attempted to harm as the riot proceeded. “I don’t think he was in any danger,” Trump quipped.
“I like Mike Pence very much. He’s a very fine man. He’s a very nice man. He made a mistake,” the former president continued. In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Pence, as president of the Senate, defied Trump’s pressure to overturn the election by throwing out Electoral College votes.
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Trump argued that Pence did have the authority to discard electoral votes. “Legal experts, including Republican legal experts, say that he does not have that authority,” Collins said.
Last week, four members of the far-right Proud Boys were found guilty of seditious conspiracy for their involvement in the Capitol riot — the first major verdict against members of the group. Jon Ryan Schaffer, a founding member of the far-right group the Oath Keepers, pleaded guilty to his involvement last month.
