During a speech in Iowa on Saturday, former president and current GOP frontrunner Donald Trump demanded that President Joe Biden “release” the individuals who have been politically persecuted by the federal government for their participation in the January 6 Capitol protests, declaring them to be “hostages.”
Trump made the comments during a speech in Clinton, Iowa, ahead of the Iowa caucuses, on the third anniversary of the January 6 Capitol protests.
“They ought to release the J6 hostages… They ought to release them,” the former president told the crowd. “I call them hostages, some people call them prisoners, I call them hostages.”
“Release the J6 hostages, Joe!” Trump added. “Release them, Joe! You can do them real easy, Joe. This guy, what he’s done to people.”
Trump on Biden: “This guy goes around and says I’m a threat to democracy. No, he’s a threat because he’s incompetent. He’s a threat to democracy.”
“He’s got us into wars, inflation would have never happened, attack on Israel would have never happened.” pic.twitter.com/Vi1JRagV55
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) January 6, 2024
Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) has spent the past three years going after anyone who was even near the Capitol on the day of the protests — tasking thousands of government agents with identifying, arresting and punishing all of these individuals. The DOJ has even charged individuals who weren’t in Washington, D.C., that day, such as former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, as well as Trump-supporting individuals who showed up at the Capitol hours after the protests had concluded.
More than 1,200 people have been arrested in connection with the January 6 Capitol protests thus far, with the DOJ handing down nearly 850 total years of prison time to roughly 450 defendants by the end of 2023, according to DOJ data reviewed by the Washington Examiner.
Biden recently bragged about his administration’s heavy-handed sentencing of these defendants — the majority of whom were nonviolent. In a speech heavily focused on January 6, the president celebrated the fact that “collectively to date, they have been sentenced to more than 840 years in prison.”
Biden also used the speech to declare Trump, who is his likely rival in the 2024 presidential election, a “loser.” He also continued to push the debunked narrative that “we nearly lost America” because Trump and his supporters engaged in an “insurrection” on January 6, despite the fact that not a single person was charged and convicted of taking part in an “insurrection.”
Biden brags about pro-Trump protesters being sentenced to 840 years in prison pic.twitter.com/74YO9qRUvF
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) January 5, 2024
Trump responded to Biden’s speech during the event on Friday, stating: “This guy goes around and says I’m a threat to democracy. No, he’s a threat because he’s incompetent. He’s a threat to democracy.”
Trump on Biden: “This guy goes around and says I’m a threat to democracy. No, he’s a threat because he’s incompetent. He’s a threat to democracy.”
“He’s got us into wars, inflation would have never happened, attack on Israel would have never happened.” pic.twitter.com/Vi1JRagV55
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) January 6, 2024
