Former President Donald Trump on Thursday night presented a sunny view of the Jan. 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol by his supporters, an event that left five people dead and led to Trump's second impeachment trial for fomenting an insurrection.
"It was zero threat, right from the start, it was zero threat," Trump told Fox News host Laura Ingraham. "Look, they went in. They shouldn't have done it. Some of them went in and they're hugging and kissing the police and the guards. You know, they had great relationships. A lot of the people were waved in, and then they walked in and they walked out. ... They're persecuting a lot of those people. And some of them should be — some things should happen to them," he conceded, adding that, in his opinion, far-left anti-fascists are getting off easy in comparison.
Some Capitol Police officers did appear to have at least cordial relations with the rioters — they are under internal investigation — but most officers on the scene were engaged in brutal hand-to-hand combat with a violent pro-Trump mob.
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The "fortress" around the Capitol, incidentally, started coming down days ago. Peter Weber
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