Republican strategist Karl Rove urged Democrats to “get tough” on former President Trump’s comments regarding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, saying the former president’s promise to free the jailed rioters He said it was a “grave mistake.”
“If they’re smart, they’re going to cherish January 6th and go all in. And they’re going to say, ‘We want to pardon the people who attacked the Capitol,'” Rove told MSNBC’s Ali -Told Melber.
“One of the big mistakes Donald Trump made in this campaign was saying, ‘I’m going to forgive these people because they’re hostages,'” Rove said in an interview that aired Wednesday. “No, they’re not. They’re thugs.”
President Trump said last month that his first act if elected to the White House would be to free the jailed members of the Jan. 6 rioters, whom he called “hostages.” The former president has repeatedly expressed sympathy for those charged in connection with the riot, and even spoke at a fundraiser held for the defendants on January 6 last year.
“I don’t understand why Trump did this,” Rove said, criticizing Trump’s appearance in a video of people assaulting police during the riot.
More than 1,350 people have been charged with federal crimes in connection with the January 6, 2021, attack when a mob of rioters stormed the Capitol to prevent Congress from certifying the 2020 election results.
Mr. Rove, former White House chief of staff to former President George W. Bush, cut into the actions of the rioters, telling Mr. Melber: Congress’s acceptance of the Electoral College results is a stain on our history. ”
“And all the sons of bitches who did that, we need to find them, try them, and send them to prison,” he added.
The strategist explained that while he is a Republican and does not want a Democrat in the White House, he cannot condone the former president’s actions.
“We have a decision to make as a country…and you know, everyone has to make a decision about what kind of leadership we’re going to have,” Loeb said. “And to me, it’s a mistake on the part of the Trump campaign to allow the president’s impulses to be equated with those who stormed the Capitol, rather than those who defend law and order.”
Trump currently faces federal and state criminal charges in Washington, D.C. and Georgia for allegedly trying to overturn the election results after losing to President Biden in 2020.
The Hill has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.
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