In the midst of the quarrels over the body responsible for the Capitol attack, interview statements by former US President Donald Trump about January 6 are causing a stir. “And there was also a loving crowd, by the way. There was a lot of love. I’ve heard that from everyone,” says Trump according to an audio recording (from minute 2:45) the “Washington Post” reporters Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker. He also claims that the Capitol Police “led” the rioters in. Both allegations were made through Video footage of the events and research by journalists has long since been refuted.
Leonnig and Rucker got Trump for their new book “I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump’s Catastrophic Final Year” (something like: Only I can fix it: Donald J. Trump’s disastrous last year) in March at Trump’s Mar-a- Lago spoken. Trump said he believed it was the largest crowd he had ever spoken to before.
Trump’s supporters overran the outnumbered police at the Capitol on January 6 and stormed the seat of the US Congress in Washington. Five people were killed, including a Capitol policeman. Dozens of people were injured. Trump had to face impeachment proceedings for the attack because he had previously incited his supporters in a speech. At the end of the trial, the Republican was acquitted.
The committee to investigate the attack on the Capitol is due to begin next week in the House of Representatives. There had recently been disagreements between Democrats and Republicans over the body. Nancy Pelosi, the chairwoman of the Congress Chamber, had turned down two Republican candidates for the body. The two are considered loyal supporters of Trump. The Republican minority leader in the Chamber of Congress, Kevin McCarthy, threatened to boycott the committee.
“This is dead serious,” said Pelosi. “It’s about our constitution, it’s about our country. It’s about an attack on the Capitol that for some reason is being misrepresented at the expense of establishing the truth.” According to the statements and actions of the rejected candidates, it would be “ridiculous” if they were part of this committee.
Last week, the first prison sentence was imposed in connection with the attack on the Capitol. A 38-year-old was found guilty of obstructing an administrative procedure by a federal district court and has to be jailed for eight months. He had broken into the Capitol Senate Chamber. This judgment is considered to be groundbreaking for other rioters who also have to answer in court. In total, more than 500 people have to answer in court for participating in the attack.