Donald Trump and his insurrectionist sympathizers at Stand in the Gap Foundation almost pulled a fast one and held a glitzy event billed as the “J6 Awards Gala” at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey before postponing the event after receiving media attention and public backlash late last month.
The event was postponed by Sarah McAbee until after the November election according to reporting by the New York Times. McAbee is the executive director of Stand in the Gap and the wife of Ronald Colton McAbee, a former deputy sheriff from Tennessee who is serving five years in prison after being convicted of attacking police officers at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Donald Trump knows his involvement in the deadly insurrection is deeply unpopular with voters. He’s desperate to avoid the visual of himself rubbing elbows with violent insurrectionists, but he can’t walk away from his actions on January 6th or his promises to pardon violent insurrectionists.
Even if Trump won’t be handing out awards to violent insurrectionists tonight at Bedminster, he’s already shown them his support in interviews and on the campaign trail:
- During the Republican National Convention this summer, Trump attacked his rivals and claimed they’re “fierce” at “cheating on elections and a couple of other things.”
- When the Trump-appointed Supreme Court ruled in a case that could impact charges against more than 300 insurrectionists charged with crimes for their actions on January 6, he praised the court and said it was a victory.
- Trump called insurrectionists jailed for violent crimes “hostages” who were the real “victims of what happened” despite at least nine people dying in connection to the events on January 6th.
- Trump has promised multiple times to pardon the January 6th insurrectionists when he returns to the White House.
- Trump is priming his supporters for more chaos and violence if he doesn’t win in November. Trump hasn’t committed to accepting the results of the election and said he would launch “an investigation or something” if he lost the 2024 election.
Published: Sep 5, 2024 | Last Modified: Sep 17, 2024