In an interview with Meet the Press on Sunday, Donald Trump accused former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of allowing pro-Trump rioters to take over the Capitol—a claim which Pelosi herself responded to, saying the former president has “always been about projection” and that “he knows he’s responsible for [the insurrection], so he projects it onto others.”
Despite the fact that Pelosi was personally targeted by rioters during the January 6th insurrection, with many seeking her out after overtaking the Capitol with the intention of doing her harm, Trump has claimed that the former House Speaker is “responsible for January 6th” because she “turned down 10,000 soldiers”. Pelosi has responded by denouncing these claims and saying that democracy is “at stake” with Trump’s bid for presidential re-election.
Donald Trump Tells Meet The Press That Nancy Pelosi Is 'Responsible For January 6th'
During an interview with Meet the Press on September 17th, Donald Trump told new show moderator Kristen Welker that Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House at the time of the Jan. 6th riots, could have actually prevented the violence of the day if she had simply accepted his offer to use the National Guard ahead of the date, on which he had planned to host a "Stop the Steal" rally for his supporters near the Capitol. Trump explained, "She turned down 10,000 soldiers," saying that Pelosi was in charge of security of the Capitol. "If she didn’t turn down the soldiers, you wouldn’t have had January 6th...Capitol police said that he wanted it and Nancy Pelosi wouldn’t accept it. She’s responsible for January 6th."
In response, Kristen Welker argued that Pelosi has stated the former president had never officially requested her permission to prepare the National Guard, though the host did not mention that the Speaker of the House does not control Capitol security, nor requests for the National Guard in security breach situations. This type of request would be up to the Capitol Police Board, who have given differing accounts of their actions on and surrounding January 6th. Rep. Pelosi did, according to a New York Times investigation, approve a request for reinforcements from the House sergeant-at-arms during the events of Jan. 6, 2 hours before the Pentagon was given the order to deploy troops to the Capitol by the District of Columbia National Guard.
Pelosi Responds To Trump Accusation: 'There Is A Sickness Here'
The former House Speaker and current California State Representative wasted no time in responding to Trump's explosive allegations, calling all of the former president's claims "projection."
"The former occupant of the White House has always been about projection. He knows he’s responsible for [the riots], so he projects it onto others," Pelosi stated during an interview on MSNBC's The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart, also on September 17th. "The assault on the Capitol building, the assault on the Constitution, the assault on our democracy, shame on him; however, he always projects." Pelosi added that she, in fact, did not turn down a military presence in the Capitol on the day of the insurrection: "[Sen.] Chuck Schumer and I begged him to send the troops again and again," she refuted. "These Trumpites were attacking the Capitol, fighting the police, threatening my life and the life of the vice president…there is a sickness here, and there has to be an intervention."
The former Speaker of the House also said that she believes democracy itself is at stake when it comes to the 2024 presidential election, and that that is the reason why she is running for another term in the House despite having stepped down as Speaker. "That intervention has to be the election, which we have to win, and that’s one of the reasons why I am running again, to fight for our democracy, which is at stake if he is on the ballot."
