Trump 'stoked' crowd on January 6 and should be held accountable, federal judge says - CNNPolitics
By: Hannah Rabinowitz (CNN)
Judge Jackson is right. Trump should be held accountable for the insurrection he created and promoted.
A federal judge suggested Wednesday that Donald Trump and others who spoke at the "Stop the Steal" rally on January 6 should be held accountable for the US Capitol riot that followed, saying the then-President "stoked" the crowd and "might've inspired what happened."
Though she did not refer to Trump by name, District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said during a sentencing for riot defendant Russell Peterson that the former President and other speakers at the Ellipse riled the crowd and "explicitly encouraged them to go to the Capitol and fight for one reason and one reason only -- to make sure the certification of the election didn't happen."
"There may be others who bear greater responsibility and should be held accountable," Jackson said to Peterson. "But this is not their day in court. It's yours."
Jackson joins the ranks of several federal judges in Washington who have sharply criticized Trump for his inflammatory speech at the January 6 rally, with one judge saying last month that rioters were "pawns" provoked into action.
While Jackson stopped short of laying full responsibility at the feet of those who spoke at the January 6 rally, she and other judges have lambasted Trump and even suggested he may face legal consequences.
Jackson has handled many politically significant court cases from the Trump era and its aftermath, and she's known for her sharp criticism of his administration. She handles a number of the more than 670 Capitol riot cases, and has repeatedly disavowed attempts to frame rioters as political prisoners and called attention to what she considers dangerous lies about the 2020 election.
Jackson also said Peterson should be held accountable, noting that he is an adult and responsible for his own actions on January 6.
" You did receive a lot of overwhelming inaccurate information on social media," Jackson said to Peterson, "but you had a choice to reject the lies and not to join the antidemocratic call for martial law."
"No one was swept away to the Capitol. No one was carried," the judge added.
Peterson was sentenced to 30 days in jail -- twice the jail time prosecutors had asked for -- and was ordered to pay $500 for damage done to the Capitol building during the riot. Jackson pointed to concerning posts on Peterson's social media accounts before and after the riot, including a comment where he said he "had fun lol" on January 6, as one of the main reasons she believed he deserved a jail sentence.
Another Trumpist insurrectionist is sentenced. I'm glad the judge gave him twice the jail time the prosecutors asked for.
"A federal judge suggested Wednesday that Donald Trump and others who spoke at the "Stop the Steal" rally on January 6 should be held accountable for the US Capitol riot that followed, saying the then-President "stoked" the crowd and "might've inspired what happened."
It wouldn't have happened otherwise - he/they were/was stoking their domestic terrorist mob(s)/crowds for months since he lost.
Good on the judge.
Definitely. I think we can expect to see a lot more of this.
As far as Trump, he skated on 'The Stormy/McDougal Who', skated on secret meetings at Helsinki and might well skate on this too. If he does then this is more proof that the influence and wealth dumped into the GOP by the Putin autocracy is real and embedded.
Here is more proof. Peterson got 30 days in US Federal Court. In Putin's Russia he would have received 30 years. Apparently the US Justice system does not take protecting the US government, it's institutions and Constitution seriously.
The DOJ needs to step it up. If they are not thoroughly investing the coup plotters, including Trump, they should be. If they have investigated and developed evidence sufficient to bring criminal charges, they should do it. That includes Trump's attempt to subvert the Georgia election results of which there appears to be overwhelming evidence.
Everybody seems to be afraid of Trump and what he might do. Wonder why that is? Is the DOJ also afraid? Why were the cameras turned off around Epstein's cell? Why was Khashoggi disappeared? Why does nobody know what was discussed behind closed doors at Helsinki except Putin and the people he brought with him? These are questions that haven't even been asked, let alone answered. And there are dozens of other questions.
Why is there so much fear surrounding Trump? What is it about the man?
I believe that the Helsinki question, and everything surrounding it, is a major national security issue. I do not trust Trump for one second. He is clearly a threat to our country.
Regarding Epstein, like trumpturd, it's been said that he would have never killed himself/never.
For you and Gsquared.
This too. Allegedly, Khashoggi was putting together an investigative financial summation which had proof that Putin, Erdogan, The Saudi Dynasty, and other lesser oligarchs were funneling money through rich Asians, Europeans, South Americans and others, plundering their respective country's treasuries to create a massive concentration of wealth which could in turn determine the viability of the Western Democracies economies. And Donald Trump was one of the money launderers in the US. All of this is conjecture. Khashoggi is assumedly dead and his works are vanished.
Examine what happened after Helsinki. The Kurdish solution. Turkeys moves into Syria. Russian moves into Syria. Bolstering of Chinese/Russian relations and aid to Iran. The Khashoggi elimination. Epstein elimination. These are only six. There are dozens more.
I would not be surprised if all of these things and more were discussed behind those closed doors at Helsinki.
I do believe that Trump was money laundering for the Russian mafia, and likely others, for many years.
I would not be surprised either.
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An obvious hit by Trump. Surprised the guards are still alive.
Or Barr. Who has issues of his own.
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Your projection, deflection and denial is so tiresome.
Oh sure, and by the time that happens he will have died of old age, and for sure I will have.
A step in the right direction...but this needs to step faster
I was just thinking the I've not seen nor heard the word "stoked" used since my dad had our coal-burning furnace replaced by a natural gas-burning one around 75 years ago. That judge must be really old.
Morning... stoked here also means really good, great...still fairly common usage in Oz..
And among surfers, in general.
... snow boarders (riders)
Australians have their own version of British English just as Americans do. We Canadians are stuck in the middle of British English and American English, we use the letter "u" more (neighbours) but speak of tires and trunks and trucks instead of tyres and boots and lorries and probably save thousands of lives by not driving on the left side of roads, although using kilometers instead of miles has probably mystified many an American driver.
Yes! When we driving down the Alcan from Alaska those kms were confusing.
It means basically the same thing whether it's the coal that's Stoked or a person, it means it or they are all fired up.
Recall a musician friend in the 60s saying how stoked he was to see a concert.
All of a sudden everybody was saying it (stoked about this, stoked about that).
Not sure where it originated.
Likely England. Much slang came from there in the 60s.
"the former President and other speakers at the Ellipse riled the crowd and "explicitly encouraged them to go to the Capitol and fight for one reason and one reason only -- to make sure the certification of the election didn't happen."
"Let's have trial by combat!" - Rudy Guiliani
Trump and his cronies definitely "stoked" the angry crowd and turned them into an angry mob. Then Trump told them to go to the Capitol (and Trump lied and said he would go with them).
Trump is guilty of sedition.
If only.
Judge Amy Barret Jackson, a 2011 Obama appointee... and obvious T-Rump hater... real objective judge there... NOT...
Anyone with an objective mindset would despise Trump. It's as simple as that.
Objective is relative to the position of the person giving the consideration....
Not being an American and not living in America, having no loyalty to any American political party or movement, but from my many past travels throughout America, even for some years owning and vacationing in a home there, I am very familiar with America and Americans so I could be one of the very few ACTUALLY truly objective about America members of NT, as I found some reasons to praise Trump yet most reasons to dislike him, but I also have reasons to both like and dislike Biden as well. That causes me to be criticized by BOTH factions, so for sure I'm more objective than they are. Just trying for the record of longest sentence (and I mean grammar, not incarceration).
You'd have to be deaf dumb and blind to not see that Trump incited that riot.
Oh, the Trumpsters here know it, but there is no way they would indicate disloyalty to their god and master by admitting it. They don't want to be crucified by their buddies like Liz Chaney is being crucified by the Republicans - fuck being principled and honest. A person would have to be deaf, dumb, blind and marooned on a deserted island to not be aware of THAT little game.
I'm sorry brother, Your not ignorant enough to ever claim either of those titles.... (besides , a real friend wouldn't let ya...) And I would like to hear what in your opinion Trump did right, it's easy to go the other way around here, what about the path less traveled once in a while? {chuckle} I know a lot of people that think he did a lot of things wrong but he did get a few things right...
Never mind brother, I just read your reply to John...
Rather than telling a friend "You're not ignorant enough to (whatever)" it might be a little kinder to say "You're too smart to (whatever)"
Who, in their right mind, doesn't hate Trump for being a fool with power?