Giuliani screams on Newsmax about Trump indictment
Giuliani screams on Newsmax about Trump indictment
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00:00 The indictment says that Trump and the co-conspirators exploited the violence and chaos of the January
00:06 6th attack.
00:07 In the aftermath, more than 1,000 people had been arrested in connection with the breach
00:11 of the U.S. Capitol.
00:13 The special counsel praised law enforcement who faced down the rioters that day.
00:18 Listen.
00:19 The men and women of law enforcement who defended the U.S. Capitol on January 6th are heroes.
00:27 They are patriots, and they are the very best of us.
00:30 They did not just defend a building or the people sheltering in it.
00:36 They put their lives on the line to defend who we are as a country and as a people.
00:41 They defended the very institutions and principles that define the United States.
00:48 As many as 140 officers were injured that day.
00:51 One of those officers is D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges.
00:55 He joins us now.
00:56 Daniel, it's good to see you again.
00:58 I mean, it is, you know, no one will ever forget the video of you being crushed as you
01:03 all were trying to hold the line and hold back rioters on that day.
01:06 With that in mind, what does what does this indictment mean to you as someone who was
01:12 on the front lines defending the Capitol that day?
01:17 Elicit nightman has been a long time coming, and I'm just grateful that it's finally here.
01:23 And in so many ways, it's just the beginning, really.
01:25 So while it is great to finally see some movement on that front, it's just another step in the
01:32 process.
01:33 So I'm looking forward to the trial and I'm looking forward to being as speedy as it is
01:39 effective.
01:42 Does this feel like accountability to you?
01:47 Like I said, it's a step in the process.
01:50 Ultimately is the end of the trial when he is hopefully found guilty of his crimes and
01:56 then sentencing is carried out.
01:58 That is personal accountability for Trump and hopefully his co-conspirators.
02:05 Ultimate accountability would be cultural, how the name Donald Trump would be held and
02:12 discussed by Americans.
02:15 But that's a long way off.
02:18 What do you think of that statement from Jack Smith, noting the heroism shown by you and
02:22 hundreds of other officers that day?
02:24 I mean, the fact that he spoke for only a couple of minutes in announcing the indictment
02:28 and as part of it, he spoke to you all in that time.
02:35 Jack Smith was very free with his praise and I'm very grateful for his acknowledgement.
02:41 And I really have to return it that he took this assignment knowing that he's going to
02:46 put himself in the crosshairs of so many pundits and people who are members of the Donald Trump
02:53 cult.
02:54 But he's clearly done his job.
02:56 He's put together a very compelling indictment and I'm grateful for him and his team and
03:03 the work that they've done.
03:06 In a very different reaction to all of this, a statement from Donald Trump and his campaign
03:11 after this indictment is comparing the case to the persecutions from Nazi Germany.
03:19 The statement from his legal team is that this is all protected First Amendment speech.
03:24 He's expected to plead not guilty when he's arrested and arraigned tomorrow.
03:29 And I want to play for you also the statement from one of the unnamed, uncharged co-conspirators,
03:36 Rudy Giuliani, in reaction to all of this.
03:41 Denying the right of free speech of an American citizen, never mind whether he was president
03:46 or not.
03:47 He could be anybody.
03:48 He could be a homeless person.
03:51 You don't get to violate people's First Amendment rights, Smith, no matter who the hell you
03:56 are or no matter how sick you are with Trump derangement syndrome.
04:01 And this isn't the first time you've acted like an unethical lawyer.
04:04 It should be the last.
04:07 What's your reaction when you see that?
04:10 I mean, that encapsulates just some of the reaction that we've heard from those supporting
04:15 Donald Trump.
04:17 What's your reaction to that?
04:21 I am not a constitutional scholar, but I don't think the First Amendment covers, you know,
04:28 inviting tens of thousands of people to D.C. to be your foot soldiers and then telling
04:33 them you have to fight, fight, fight for your country, knowing that they're armed, sending
04:37 them to the Capitol and knowing what they are capable of, what's on their minds and
04:43 in their hearts.
04:44 That's that's an insurrection.
04:46 That's not protected by the First Amendment.
04:50 You're still on the job.
04:51 You're still working.
04:52 I know you told my colleague recently that your life, it hasn't changed.
04:57 I mean, it's changed your life.
04:59 You've never needed to experience something like that, but you're back on the job.
05:03 You're still doing what you need to do.
05:05 This is all now happening in the middle of another election cycle.
05:08 Are you concerned or I don't know, do you have any fear about what this trial could
05:14 mean for the country, considering the violence that you saw on January 6th?
05:20 Well, I'm more afraid of what would happen if there wasn't a trial, if Donald Trump was
05:28 allowed to do what he did and face absolutely no consequences.
05:33 That would just mean that it was only a matter of time until someone tried it again, because
05:38 I would call it a dry run, but it wasn't a dry run because it was a very real attempt.
05:43 It was.
05:46 But with regards to future violence, I think the FBI making consistent arrests over the
05:53 years and continuing to do so today has been a huge measure against any threats of future
06:00 violence of that nature, because everyone's afraid to come back to D.C. now.
06:04 They try to save face by saying any rallies or marches or a honeypot operation, but the
06:11 truth is they just don't want to get arrested, which means that what they want to do is commit
06:16 crimes.
06:17 So the arrests have been effective, and I think that any future violence would be of
06:23 a smaller group or smaller nature, but potentially destructive as well.
06:33 Daniel Hodges, it's good to see you again.
06:35 Thank you so much.
06:36 It's good to see you, too.