House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is rallying behind President Donald Trump‘s crackdown on the Los Angeles riots, saying “a clear distinction exists between the violence perpetrated in Los Angeles compared to the conduct of people involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.”
“Everybody wants me to relitigate Jan. 6,” Johnson said. “I’m not going to do that. There’s a very clear distinction between the two. The people who broke the law and destroyed property were met with the proper consequences on Jan. 6.”
Trump is facing strong criticism from Democrats, Capitol police officers, and federal prosecutors, who said he is being hypocritical in his handling of the Los Angeles riots. Over the weekend, Trump ordered 2,000 National Guard troops to be deployed to Los Angeles, going against the wishes of Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.
Critics noted that when the Capitol Police chief declared the 2021 protest at the Capitol a riot, it took Trump nearly 2 1/2 hours to tell his supporters to return home. It also took four hours for the National Guard to be deployed following the Capitol Police chief’s initial request.
However, Trump has blamed Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for bucking his requests for the National Guard to be deployed on Jan. 6, 2021. Pelosi has taken responsibility for the security failures that day. Trump also discussed deploying the National Guard with Pentagon leaders prior to the riot.
“President Trump has urged the immediate deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles, despite the governor and mayor saying it’s not needed,” Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-MD) said. “Yet he delayed sending the guard on Jan. 6, when insurrectionists stormed the Capitol, violently attacked police and targeted Mike Pence and Nancy Pelosi.”
On his first day in office, Trump issued pardons for nearly 1,500 people charged for their involvement in the Jan. 6 riot, including 600 people who were accused of assaulting police officers.
Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn, who responded to the Jan. 6 riot, told CBS News it is “bulls***” how Trump still refers to Jan. 6 as a “day of love.”
“Hypocrisy is the key word,” Dunn said. “Trump thinks anything done in his name is OK. Jan. 6 was done in his name, so our officers don’t matter.”
However, Republicans have praised Trump’s quick response to the Los Angeles riots, which have resulted in cars set ablaze, businesses looted, and officers attacked. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) said the presence of the National Guard troops and Marines, which were deployed on Tuesday, should work to contain the violence.
“Hopefully, their presence will be a deterrent to violence. Obviously, there’s a right to assemble, and there’s a right to peacefully protest — and then there’s what they’re doing,” Cramer said. “So clearly, the state needs help, and the president’s sending help, hopefully, hopefully it’ll bring some peace.”
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Johnson also took shots at Newsom, saying he should be “tarred and feathered” for his response to the Los Angeles riots.
“President Trump has put his hand on the table and said ‘Not on my watch,’ and we applaud that so we’re standing with him,” Johnson said during a news conference.