WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Since the deadly January 6 uprising at the Capitol, former President Donald Trump and his Republican allies have pushed false and misleading statements to downplay the event that killed five and injured dozens more. His supporters seem to have listened.
Three months after a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to try to reverse his November election loss, about half of Republicans believe the siege was largely a non-violent protest or the handiwork of left-wing activists who “tried. Trump looking bad., ”New Reuters / Ipsos poll found.
Six out of ten Republicans also believe Trump’s false claim that the November presidential election was ‘stolen from him’ because of widespread voter fraud, and the same proportion of Republicans think he should re-run in 2024, the report found. poll from March 30-31. .
Since the attack on the Capitol, Trump, many of his allies within the Republican Party and right-wing media personalities have publicly portrayed the events of the day that are shockingly contradictory to reality.
Hundreds of Trump supporters mobilized by the former president’s false claims of stolen elections climbed the walls of the Capitol and smashed windows to gain access as lawmakers voted inside to confirm President Joe Biden’s election victory. The rioters – many of them wearing Trump campaign gear and waving flags – also included well-known white racist groups such as the Proud Boys.
In a recent interview with Fox News, Trump said the rioters were “zero threat.” Other prominent Republicans, such as Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, have publicly questioned whether Trump supporters were behind the riot.
Last month, 12 Republicans in the House of Representatives voted against a resolution honoring Capitol Police agents who defended the grounds during the disaster, with a lawmaker saying he objected to the use of the word “insurgency” to describe the incident .
The Reuters / Ipsos poll shows that a large number of ordinary Republicans have embraced the myth. While 59% of all Americans say Trump has some responsibility for the attack, only three in 10 Republicans agree. Eight in ten Democrats and six in ten Independents reject false claims that the siege of the Capitol was “largely peaceful” or that it was organized by left-wing protesters.
“Republicans have their own version of reality,” said John Geer, a public opinion expert at Vanderbilt University. “It’s a huge problem. Democracy requires accountability and accountability requires evidence. “
Trump’s and prominent Republicans’ refusal to reject the January 6 events increases the likelihood that a similar incident will occur again, said Susan Corke, director of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups.
“That’s the biggest danger: normalizing this behavior,” said Corke. “I think we’ll see more violence.”
As a new reminder of the security threats facing the Capitol since January 6, a motorist rammed a car into Capitol police on Friday and brandished a knife, killing one officer and wounding another, forcing the Capitol complex was to close. Officers shot the suspect.
Allie Carroll, a spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, said members condemned the Capitol attack and was referring to a Jan. 13 statement by Chairman Ronna McDaniel. “Violence has no place in our politics … Those who participated in the assault on our nation’s Capitol and those who continue to threaten violence should be found, held accountable and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said McDaniel.
A Trump representative did not respond to requests for comment.
‘DANGEROUS TURN ON REALITY’
The disinformation campaign aimed at downplaying Trump’s uprising and role in it reflects a growing consensus within the Republican Party that its fortunes remain tied to Trump and his dedicated base, political observers say.
Trump remains the most popular figure in the party, according to the new Reuters / Ipsos poll, with eight in ten Republicans still holding a favorable impression of him.
“Republicans in Congress have ruled that they must maximize the Trump vote to win,” said Tim Miller, a former spokesman for Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush. “That is the way back to the majority.”
Republicans in Congress are showing little sign of breaking with Trump. Immediately after the deadly siege of the Capitol, 147 Republican lawmakers voted against Biden’s election victory. The Democrat-led House of Representatives accused Trump of “inciting insurgency,” making him the only US president to be impeached twice, but most Senate Republicans cleared him of the charge in a trial.
Last week, Indiana Republican Congressman Jim Banks said the party should target the workers’ voters who form Trump’s political base ahead of next year’s critical midterm elections that will dictate control of Congress.
“Members who want to swap working-class voters for resenting President Trump’s impact … are wrong,” Banks wrote in a memo to Republican House leader Kevin McCarthy, the content of which he posted to Twitter.
Banks was one of 147 lawmakers who voted to block certification of Biden’s victory, and he later voted against impeaching Trump. Banks did not respond to requests for comment.
Some mainstream Republicans argue that after the Republicans lost both the White House and control of both chambers of Congress under Trump’s oversight, the party must leave the former president to attract moderate and independent voters.
In the latest Reuters / Ipsos poll, only about three in ten independents said they have a favorable view of Trump, one of the lowest figures since his presidency. Most Americans – about 60% – also believe Biden won the November Election Fair and Square, saying Trump shouldn’t run again.
Illinois Representative Adam Kinzinger, one of Trump’s foremost Republican critics in Congress, has criticized the attempt to rewrite the history of the Capitol attack.
The attempt at disinformation is “such a dangerous, disgusting twist on reality,” Kinzinger wrote in a call for fundraising to supporters last month, “and what’s worse is that it is not being challenged by so many in the Republican Party. . “
The window for the Republican Party to distance itself from Trump appears to be over, Miller said.
“After January 6, there was an opportunity for Republican leaders to really get a foothold and say, ‘We can’t be the insurgent party,’” he said. “Now that chance is completely gone.”
The Reuters / Ipsos survey was conducted online in English across the United States. It collected responses from 1,005 adults between March 30 and 31. The poll has a credibility interval, a measure of precision, of about 4 percentage points.
Editing by Soyoung Kim and Alistair Bell