Trump calls 6 January US Capitol riot a 'day of love'

 At a campaign event in Miami, Donald Trump described the January 6th Capitol riot as a "day of love," defending the actions of those who stormed the Capitol. Speaking just weeks before the upcoming election, Trump repeated his long-debunked claim that the 2020 election was rigged, saying that the thousands of people who gathered in Washington that day did so because they believed the election had been unfair.

On January 6, 2021, a violent mob broke into the US Capitol to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s election victory, forcing lawmakers to flee. Several people died as a result of the attack, including a police officer. Despite this, Trump insisted, "Nothing was done wrong" and downplayed the violence, claiming there were no guns among the rioters and referring to the violent group as a small fraction of the larger crowd. 

Trump continues to face investigations related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Special Counsel Jack Smith’s recent findings claim that Trump planned to declare victory regardless of the outcome and pressured his vice-president, Mike Pence, to help challenge the results. Pence refused, creating a rift between the two.

At the Miami event, one voter questioned why he should support Trump, especially after Pence refused to back him in the 2020 election fight. Trump responded by criticizing Pence’s decision not to stop the certification, stating, "I totally disagreed with him on what he did."