Washington Post: “Trump then kicked off the rally with a promise to help the defendants — a group that includes violent offenders he has glorified as ‘patriots’ and ‘hostages’ and pledged to pardon if he returns to power.”
Said Trump: “We’re going to be working on that the first day we get into office.
”“That vow is part of a broader renewed emphasis by Trump to align himself with Jan. 6 rioters, as he intensifies his use of dark, graphic and at times violent language as he has closed in on and secured the Republican nomination. Until November, he called the Jan. 6 defendants, some of whom have been detained by court order or are serving sentences, ‘political prisoners’ before introducing the term ‘hostages,’ according to a Washington Post analysis of his speeches this campaign cycle.”
“The analysis also showed an uptick in his references to Jan. 6 defendants, as well as the word “criminals,” which Trump has used to describe prosecutors, political opponents, the press and undocumented immigrants.”