Maddow Blog | Trump’s stance on the January 6 attack is reaching an ugly new low

As Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign has progressed, the Republican has emphasized his support and affection for the January 6 rioters. The former president has defended them as “victims” and “hostages.” He has promised to reward them with day one pardons — including those who violently clashed with law enforcement. He has helped rioters raise money, and at one point the GOP nominee even released a song featuring the Jan. 6 inmates.

But it turned out that there was still room to fall further.

At a Univision town hall event, a man named Ramiro Gonzalez told Trump he had lost his support, in part because of his handling of January 6. “I want to give you an opportunity to try to win my vote back,” the Floridian – who described himself as a Republican – told the former president.

After pretending he wasn’t responsible for summoning the Jan. 6 crowd to the nation’s capital, Trump said, “Nothing wrong was done. Nothing was done wrong at all.”

He continued, referring to the insurgent violence: “There were no guns down there; we had no weapons. The others had guns, but we didn’t have guns.’

To be clear, when Trump talked about “we,” he was joining the ranks of violent criminals — some of whom were carrying guns, despite his latest lies. Likewise, “the others” referred to law enforcement personnel.

The Washington Post published an analysis that noted, “It’s actually not the first time Trump has appeared to do this. But last time, Trump’s comments weren’t so clear, and apparently he caught himself. During last month’s presidential debate, Trump mentioned ‘we’ before switching to ‘this group of people.’”

Returning to our previous reporting, the day after the attack on the Capitol, the then-president said: “Like all Americans, I am outraged by the violence, lawlessness and chaos.” He went on to describe the riot as a “heinous attack.”

Reading from a prepared text, Trump added: “The protesters who infiltrated the Capitol have defiled the seat of American democracy. … To those who engage in violence and destruction: You do not represent our country, and to those who broke the law: You will pay.”

Five days later, the Republican condemned the ‘mafia [that] stormed the Capitol and destroyed government buildings.” On the last full day of his term, Trump, again reading from a script, added: “All Americans were shocked by the attack on our Capitol. Political violence is an attack on everything we cherish as Americans. It can never be tolerated.”

Nearly four years later, Trump not only “tolerates” the rioters’ crimes, he associates himself with the rioters.

The Republican is not only rewriting history and recreating insurgent violence in the final weeks of the race, he is also engaged in a bizarre battle pitting the January 2017 version of himself against the October 2024 version.

It’s a fight he’s losing because he can’t win it.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com