Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested in a lengthy statement Friday that the prosecution of rioters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, could be politically motivated, joining in part the false image pushed by the former president. Donald Trump and his allies.
The statement came a day after Kennedy came under fire for a fundraising email that painted a sympathetic portrait of the rioters as “activists” who had been “stripped of their constitutional freedoms.”
Although Kennedy’s campaign said it had severed ties with a contractor who sent the fundraising email, his latest statement struck a similar tone. Rather than rejecting the idea that the rioters are being unfairly prosecuted, Kennedy has embraced it, saying he is “concerned about the possibility that political objectives may have motivated the vigor of the prosecution of the J6 defendants.”
Regarding the events of January 6, Kennedy said: “I want to hear all sides.”
Kennedy’s statement partly criticizes Trump — saying the attack on the Capitol happened with his “encouragement” and “in the context of his delusion that the election was stolen from him.” Still, Kennedy said that as president he would appoint a special counsel to investigate whether Trump allies were wrongly singled out for prosecution, “and I will right any wrongs we find.”
Trump routinely calls those convicted in the Jan. 6 attack “hostages” and has promised to pardon them if he wins back the White House.
Kennedy also falsely claims in his statement that the rioters were not carrying weapons. Some members of the crowd were carrying weapons and one was recently accused of firing a shot into the air during the riot. Other rioters used items such as flagpoles, a stool, a hockey stick, a lacrosse stick, pepper spray and a PVC pipe to attack officers.
The violence on January 6 was extensive. The mob of Trump supporters stormed past police barriers, engaged in hand-to-hand combat with officers, smashed windows and stormed into the Capitol building, sending lawmakers into hiding.
On the day of the attack, a makeshift gallows was photographed outside the Capitol and some chanted “Hang Mike Pence.” Rioters roamed the halls shouting, “Where are you, Nancy?” referring to Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi, then the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Police officers were bruised and bloodied as they were dragged through the crowd and beaten. One officer was crushed between a doorframe and another suffered a heart attack after a rioter pressed a stun gun to his neck and repeatedly shocked him.
More than 1,300 people have been charged in the attack on the Capitol, including about 500 people charged with assaulting, resisting or obstructing officers. About 1,000 people have pleaded guilty or been convicted by a judge or jury of crimes including seditious conspiracy, assault and civil unrest. Only two defendants have been acquitted of all charges after a trial, both by judges who decided the case without a jury.
Of the more than 800 rioters convicted, at least 229 have served at least a year behind bars, according to an Associated Press investigation of the court. The longest sentences to date have gone to the leaders of two far-right extremist groups – the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys – who were convicted of seditious conspiracy after trials that revealed weeks of conspiracy to use violence to secure the transfer of the US presidential power. Trump vs. Biden.
Judges overseeing the cases in federal court in Washington have consistently emphasized that the rioters are being punished for their actions, not their political beliefs. Judges appointed to the court by the presidents of both political parties have sought to use their platforms to combat distortions about the attack and admonish rioters for portraying themselves as victims of political persecution.
Under Justice Department rules, the attorney general — not the president — appoints special counsel. And historically, special counsels have been appointed to investigate crimes, as in the cases against Trump, and not to challenge the decision-making of Justice Department leadership.
Kennedy portrayed Trump, who faces dozens of charges in four jurisdictions for various alleged crimes, as the victim of a politically motivated administration, echoing both the former president’s own characterization of the charges as corrupt and claims by Republicans in Congress that federal agencies are “armed”. against conservatives.
“You can, like me, oppose Donald Trump and everything he stands for and still be disturbed by the administration’s weaponization of him,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy is a lawyer and activist known for fighting for environmental causes and rejecting the scientific consensus that vaccines are safe and effective. He has a fervent base of support among voters who distrust the government and other institutions in American life, including the media, political parties and corporations.
Democrats and their allies on the left have mobilized against Kennedy, the descendant of prominent Democrats from the most recognizable dynasty in American politics, who they fear will divide the anti-Trump coalition and propel Trump to victory in November to help.
“There are no two sides to the violent rioters who have attacked police officers and attempted to overthrow our democracy,” said Matt Corridoni, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee. “Time and time again, RFK Jr. proven himself to be a spoiler for Donald Trump, whether Trump’s biggest donor supporting his candidacy or providing cover for Trump by downplaying the severity of January 6.”
Allies of the former president also worry about the fallout from Kennedy’s candidacy, as many of his conspiratorial views closely align with Trump’s.
Long before he ran for president, Kennedy was associated with people who played a role in the Jan. 6 chaos and the larger movement that spread the lie that the election was stolen from Trump. Anti-vaccine company owners Ty and Charlene Bollinger, who the AP has previously reported had a financial relationship with Kennedy, were involved in organizing a rally near the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, as was Kennedy’s campaign staffer, Del Bigtree .
In the months following the attack, Kennedy was one of the featured speakers at the ReAwaken America tour, a Christian nationalist roadshow led by Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn, where speakers consistently peddled the lie that the 2020 presidential election was over. stolen and Trump is. the rightful president. Kennedy was photographed backstage with Flynn, Charlene Bollinger and Roger Stone, a close Trump ally.
Kennedy has also appeared on InfoWars, the channel of Sandy Hook conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who attended the rally that preceded the attack on the Capitol and marched up the Capitol steps himself on January 6.
The anti-vaccine group that Kennedy led for years, Children’s Health Defense, currently has a lawsuit pending against several news organizations, including The Associated Press, accusing them of violating antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation, including about COVID 19 and COVID -19 vaccines. The Bollingers are also part of that lawsuit, and Kennedy is listed as one of the attorneys.
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Associated Press writers Eric Tucker, Michael Kunzelman and Michelle R. Smith contributed.
