Former US president, Donald Trump has reacted to the vote to press criminal charges including obstruction and insurrection, for his role in sparking the attack on January 6, 2021.
On January 6, 2021, a massive gathering of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building when the US Congress had convened to certify Biden’s victory as the next president of the United States. The bid to overturn the election results, however, failed as the US Congress reconvened to certify Biden.
The violence and rioting inside the Capitol building resulted in the deaths of five individuals, including a police officer. A woman was shot dead by police during the rioting.
The panel on Monday December 19, voted to let the Department of Justice file criminal charges against Trump.
Trump on Tuesday, scoffed at the panel and said their actions “strengthen me”.
“These folks don’t get it that when they come after me, people who love freedom rally around me. It strengthens me,” Trump said on Truth Social.
He added that the Democrats on the panel recommended that the Justice Department charge him with criminal charges because they want to stop his presidential campaign for 2024.
Trump also compared the panel’s move to charge him with the crimes to his second impeachment, which ended with the US Senate failing to obtain enough votes to convict him.
“The people understand that the Democratic Bureau of Investigation, the DBI, are out to keep me from running for president because they know I’ll win and that this whole business of prosecuting me is just like impeachment was – a partisan attempt to sideline me and the Republican Party,” he said.
He also defended himself and claimed that he “pushed for 20,000 troops to prevent violence on January 6, and that I went on television and told everyone to go home.”
