Donald Trump defended Ashli Babbitt as a “patriot” and denounced the police officer who shot and killed her as a “thug” at Wednesday’s CNN town hall event.
Babbitt, a Trump supporter and Air Force veteran, was the only person killed during the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6 when she was shot by U.S. Capitol Police Officer Lieutenant Michael Byrd.
City Hall moderator Kaitlan Collins be aware that “More than 140 officers were injured” during the riots.
“And a person named Ashli Babbitt was killed,” Trump countered. “And she shouldn’t have been killed.”
“And that thug who killed her, there was no reason to shoot her,” the former president continued. “She was a good person. She was a patriot.”
“There was no reason.”
When asked about endangering police officers on 1/6, Donald Trump defends Ashli Babbitt and attacks the officer who killed her as a “thug”:
“Ashli Babbitt was killed… And that thug who killed her, there was no reason to shoot her… She was a good person. She was a patriot.” pic.twitter.com/gKuyj6CaOG
— The Recount (@therecount) May 11, 2023
RELATED: Speaker McCarthy defends cop who killed Ashli Babbitt: He ‘did his job’
Trump hammers on cop who killed Ashli Babbitt
Trump, the leading candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination for president — and currently the leading nominee overall — continued to criticize Byrd for his reaction to the shooting of Ashli Babbitt.
“He went on television to brag about killing her,” he charged.
Collins countered that the officer wasn’t bragging about his actions, but that Trump didn’t say, “Oh, he was bragging.”
Byrd suggested in an interview with MSNBC that his actions “saved countless lives” by protecting lawmakers and said that knocking down Babbitt, who was unarmed but tried to climb into the House chamber through broken glass, took the “greatest courage” showed.
Which, contrary to what Collins believes, sounds like someone bragging.
Lieutenant Michael Byrd, who shot Trump supporter Ashli Babbitt during the Capitol riot, says he has been in hiding for months after receiving a deluge of death threats and racist attacks.
“I believe I showed the utmost courage on January 6 and it is time I did so now” pic.twitter.com/2kaAxy8yGc
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) August 26, 2021
RELATED: Documents Show Ashli Babbitt Unarmed, Judicial Watch Says ‘No Good Reason’ To Shoot
Trump’s Past Comments on Byrd
This isn’t the first time Trump has heavily criticized the actions of the officer who opened fire on Ashli Babbitt during the riot.
Responding to comments in February from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy who said Byrd was just “doing his job,” Trump again countered that the officer was a “thug.”
Trump said he “completely disagreed” with McCarthy’s assessment, calling Byrd a “coward” and insisting that Babbitt was “killed”.
“He was not a hero but a coward, who wanted to show how tough he was,” Trump said on his Truth Social media platform. “ASHLI BABBITT WAS KILLED!!!”
D.C. Metropolitan Police internal documents obtained through a FOIA lawsuit by the conservative group Judicial Watch, show that witnesses had not seen Babbitt with a gun.
They also give conflicting reports as to whether she was even verbally warned before being shot by Byrd.
Lieutenant Michael Byrd would have been charged with manslaughter — if not murder — if he had shot Ashli Babbitt in Texas.
She was unarmed and posed no threat to herself or the officer.
HER MURDER WAS UNJUSTIFIED.https://t.co/f2nb5yrCMY #Fox news
— Congressman Troy E. Nehls (@RepTroyNehls) October 13, 2021
The revelations prompted Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, to state that there was “no good reason” to shoot Babbitt.
“The Biden-Garland Justice Department … has a lot to answer for for mishandling and covering up this outrageous murder of a US citizen by the US Capitol Police,” Fitton said.
However, Byrd had been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing and was cleaned up internally by the Capitol Police in August 2021.
The internal review “determined that the officer’s conduct was lawful and within department policy,” according to a statement from the Capitol Police Department, and as such, he would not face any disciplinary action.
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