Former President Donald Trump, campaigning in Iowa Saturday, marked the third anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol by casting the migrant surge on the southern border as the “real” insurrection.
Quick Read
- Campaign Focus on Immigration: While campaigning in Iowa, Trump cast the migrant surge at the southern U.S. border as the “real” insurrection, contrasting it with the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol assault.
- Claims About Migrant Crossings: Trump continued to assert that countries are sending criminals across the border, a claim for which there is no evidence.
- Reference to Jan. 6 Speech: Trump quoted his speech from Jan. 6, emphasizing the words “peacefully and patriotically,” while downplaying the Capitol riot.
- Biden’s Speech on Democracy: President Biden recently delivered a speech near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where he described Trump as a threat to democracy and referenced the Jan. 6 Capitol assault.
- Jan. 6 in Campaign Rhetoric: Both Biden and Trump have frequently mentioned Jan. 6 in their campaign narratives, with Trump facing a federal indictment for his actions related to the 2020 election.
- Treatment of Jan. 6 Rioters: Trump labeled those jailed for participating in the Jan. 6 riot as “hostages,” continuing to express sympathy for them.
- Iowa Caucus Preparations: Trump held commit-to-caucus events in Newton and Clinton, Iowa, as part of his campaign efforts before the state’s caucuses.
- Personal Interactions with Supporters: Trump engaged personally with his supporters, signing autographs and interacting with them, including a pastor who expressed deep admiration for him.
- Surprise Visit to Young Conservatives: Earlier on Saturday, Trump made a surprise visit to young conservative activists in Des Moines, addressing members of Run GenZ.
- Rivalry with Haley and DeSantis: Trump’s campaign in Iowa occurs alongside campaigns by Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis, who are competing for second place as alternatives to Trump in the Republican nomination.
- Attacks on Nikki Haley: Trump stepped up attacks against Haley, accusing her of being disloyal and insufficiently conservative, and criticized her for recent statements about the Civil War and the New Hampshire primary.
- Haley’s Response to Trump: Haley has responded to Trump’s attacks by dismissing his claims and suggesting that his focus on her indicates concern about her gaining momentum.
The Associated Press has the story:
Trump downplays Jan. 6 on Capitol siege 3rd anniversary, calls jailed rioters ‘hostages’
Newslooks- NEWTON, Iowa (AP) —
Former President Donald Trump, campaigning in Iowa Saturday, marked the third anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol by casting the migrant surge on the southern border as the “real” insurrection.
Just over a week before the Republican nomination process begins with Iowa’s kickoff caucuses, Trump continued to claim that countries have been emptying jails and mental institutions to fuel a record number of migrant crossings. There is no evidence that this is the case.
“When you talk about insurrection, what they’re doing, that’s the real deal. That’s the real deal. Not patriotically and peacefully — peacefully and patriotically,” Trump said, quoting from his speech on Jan. 6, before a violent mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol as part of a desperate bid to keep him in power after his 2020 election loss.
Trump’s remarks came a day after Biden delivered a speech near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where he cast Trump as a grave threat to democracy and called Jan. 6 a day when “we nearly lost America — lost it all.”
With a likely rematch of the 2020 election looming, both Biden and Trump have frequently invoked Jan. 6 on the campaign trail. Trump, who is under federal indictment for his efforts to overturn his 2020 loss to Biden, has consistently downplayed or spread conspiracy theories about a riot in which his supporters — spurred by his lies about election fraud — tried to disrupt the certification of Biden’s victory.
Trump also continued to bemoan the treatment of those who have been jailed for participating in the riot, again labeling them “hostages.” More than 1,230 people have been charged with federal crimes connected to the violence, including assaulting police officers and seditious conspiracy.
Trump was holding a pair of commit-to-caucus events in Newton in central Iowa and Clinton in the state’s far east just over a week before voting will begin on Jan. 15.
After Trump spoke in Newton, he signed hats and other items people in the crowd passed to him, including a copy of a Playboy magazine.
One man in the crowd, Dick Green, was standing about 15 feet away, weeping after the former president autographed his white “Trump Country” hat and shook his hand. A caucus captain and a pastor in Brighton, Iowa, Green said he had prayed for four years to meet Trump.
“It’ll never get sold. It will be in my family,” Green said of the hat.
Earlier Saturday, Trump courted young conservative activists in Des Moines, speaking to members of Run GenZ, an organization that encourages young conservatives to run for office. Many in the audience at the Embassy Suites hotel in Des Moines seemed surprised to see Trump, whose visit had not been previously announced.
Trump’s campaign is hoping to turn out thousands of supporters who have never caucused before as part of a show of force aimed at denying his rivals momentum and demonstrating his organizing prowess heading into the general election.
His chief rivals, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, were also campaigning in the state as they battle for second place in hopes of emerging as the most viable alternative to Trump, who is leading by wide margins in early state and national polls.
Trump has used the trip to step up his attacks against Haley, who has been gaining ground. He again cast her Saturday as insufficiently conservative and a “globalist’ beholden to Wall Street donors, and accused her of being disloyal for running against him.
“Nikki will sell you out just like she sold me out,” he charged.
On Friday night, Trump highlighted several recent Haley statements that drew criticism, including her comment that voters in New Hampshire correct Iowa’s mistakes (“You don’t have to be corrected,” he said) and her failure to mention slavery when asked what had caused the Civil War.
“I don’t know if it’s going to have an impact, but you know like … slavery’s sort of the obvious answer as opposed to her three paragraphs of bulls—,” he told a crowd Friday.
In Newton, he said that he was fascinated by the “horrible” war, which he suggested he could have prevented.
“It’s so fascinating,” he said. “It’s just different. I just find it… I’m so attracted to seeing it… So many mistakes were made. See that was something I think could have been negotiated, to be honest with you.”
Haley’s campaign has pointed to his escalating attention, including a new attack ad, as evidence Trump is worried about her momentum.
“God bless President Trump, he’s been on a temper tantrum every day about me … and everything he’s saying is not true,” Haley told a crowd Saturday in North Liberty, Iowa.
