As Donald Trump’s possible running mates continue to downplay January 6, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

“Donald Trump’s potential running mates have the same shameful track record of eagerly rushing to downplay the horrific events of January 6 and continuing to echo his dangerous attacks on our democracy. Trump’s veepstakes contenders are still desperately trying to out-MAGA each other as Trump continues to spew lies about the 2020 election, vows to pardon January 6 insurrectionists, and casts doubt on future election results. The American people remember the horrific attacks on our democracy and on law enforcement on January 6, and they will not be fooled by the incessant whitewashing from Trump and his anti-democracy MAGA minions.”

Donald Trump’s VP contenders have downplayed January 6.

Tim Scott: “99 percent of the people who showed up were there to exercise their First Amendment rights. What I said then is what I’ll say now. I don’t hold those people at harm.”

The Hill: “JD Vance says he is ‘skeptical’ Pence’s life was in danger on Jan. 6”

Politico: “Elise Stefanik calls Jan. 6 defendants ‘hostages’”

Newsweek: “‘There was no way they were going to overthrow the government,’ said Rubio. … ‘I also do not think people should be misled to think this somehow was on the verge of overthrowing the government.’ Rubio also explained another reason why the events of January 6 should not be considered an insurrection. That was because Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 presidential election eventually resumed after protesters broke into the Capitol building.”

Interviewer: “Do you see [Trump’s] rhetoric as at least connected to the events that happened on January 6, even if you don’t see them affecting trust in the democratic system overall?”

Byron Donalds: “No, I don’t.”

Associated Press: “Noem defends Trump legacy, deflects blame for Capitol mob”

Roll Call: “Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas consistently has staked out a tough-on-crime stance during his time in the Senate, but he and other congressional Republicans have sided with the defendants in a Supreme Court case about the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.”

NBC News: “Vivek Ramaswamy promotes Jan. 6 conspiracy theory by suggesting it was ‘an inside job’”

Fox News: “Tulsi Gabbard slams the Jan 6 hearings: It’s ‘political interest’”

Ben Carson: “I think it would have been appropriate, perhaps, to look at all of the alternative theories seriously because there was significant controversy about what had happened in the election.”

Trump has made clear he wants an extreme election denier as a running mate, and his VP contenders are quickly falling in line by refusing to commit to accepting this November’s election results.

Interviewer: “Do you have any regrets about picking Mike Pence as your vice president? And what will you do differently this time around when you’re vetting your VP?”

Trump: “Mike did a good job until the end when he didn’t have the courage to do what you have to do. … if he did that, I believe you would have had different election results.”

NBC News: “None of these potential vice presidential picks have committed to accepting the 2024 election results, whether Trump wins or loses.” 

Washington Post: “Top Republicans, led by Trump, refuse to commit to accept 2024 election results”

“The question has become something of a litmus test, particularly among the long list of possible running mates for Trump. … The GOP’s desire to appease Trump’s fixation on 2020 now appears to loom over his search for a running mate.”

New York Times: “Will You Accept the Election Results? Republicans Dodge the Question.”

“Less than six months out from the presidential contest, leading Republicans, including several of Donald J. Trump’s potential running mates, have refused to commit to accepting the results of the election, signaling that the party may again challenge the outcome if its candidate loses.”

MSNBC: “Potential GOP running mates hedge on accepting election results”

“Trump, obviously, is refusing to commit to honoring the election results — the same posture he adopted four years ago — but so are those hoping to be his running mate.”

Axios: “Republicans are increasingly joining former President Trump on hedging or dodging when asked whether they’ll accept the results of the 2024 elections.”

New York Magazine: “Is 2024 Election Denialism a Trump VP Litmus Test?”

Axios: “Trump and his allies will want a VP pick that is more willing to comply with the former president’s wishes, which former Vice President Pence rejected by certifying the 2020 results.”

CNN: “As Trump continues to focus on his false claims over election integrity, many of his potential deputies expressed their own concerns.”

Trump continues to praise and promise pardons for violent January 6 rioters – who he calls “hostages” and “patriots.” 

TIME: “Trump has sought to recast the insurrectionist riot as an act of patriotism. ‘I call them the J-6 patriots,’ Trump tells TIME. When asked whether he would consider pardoning every one of them, he says: ‘Yes, absolutely.’”

​​Washington Post: ​​“Former president Donald Trump on Thursday praised and embraced a woman convicted of defying police orders on the U.S. Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021. … Trump has steadily escalated his advocacy for people charged in the Capitol riot, including by pledging to pardon them if he returns to the White House, praising them as patriots, participating in a recording with Jan. 6 prisoners singing the national anthem, and playing it at his first rally of the 2024 campaign last month.”

The Hill: “Trump describes imprisoned Jan. 6 rioters as ‘hostages’”

Washington Post: “Trump vows pardons, government apology to Capitol rioters if elected”

NBC News: “Former President Donald Trump promised Wednesday night that if he is elected he will pardon a ‘large portion’ of the people convicted of federal offenses for their participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.”

Trump: “January 6, it was the largest crowd I’ve ever spoken to. And they were there proud, they were there with love in their heart. That was an unbelievable — and it was a beautiful day.”

Business Insider: “Then-President Donald Trump didn’t want to specifically call for the Justice Department to prosecute January 6 rioters or forcefully condemn those who stormed the Capitol as unrepresentative of the MAGA movement.”

NBC News: “Trump spoke at a fundraiser for Jan. 6 defendants”

Trump has threatened political violence and warned of a “bloodbath” if he loses in November, and he is vowing to be a dictator on “day one” if he wins.

TIME: “Donald Trump Says Political Violence ‘Depends’ on ‘Fairness’ of 2024 Election”

Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN: “Many people have lost American presidential elections over the last 230 years – Trump is the only one to say about violence if he loses ‘it depends.’”

NBC News: “Trump says there will be a ‘bloodbath’ if he loses the election”

Rolling Stone: “Trump Says There Will Be a ‘Bloodbath’ and Elections Will End if He Isn’t Reelected”

New York Times: “Trump Defends His Warning of a ‘Blood Bath for the Country’”

The Atlantic: “Trump Says He’ll Be a Dictator on ‘Day One’”

Associated Press: “Trump declines to rule out abusing power to seek retribution if he returns to the White House”

Washington Post: “Trump calls political enemies ‘vermin,’ echoing dictators Hitler, Mussolini”

The Guardian: “Donald Trump says he will lock up his political enemies if he is president again.”

Forbes: “Trump said of his relationships with dictators, ‘the tougher and meaner they are, the better I get along with them,’ which he insisted is ‘not a bad thing.’ 

“‘The easy ones,’ Trump said, referring to America’s allies, ‘I maybe don’t like as much or don’t get along with as much.’”