Trump White House says Democrats staged the real insurrection on January 6

New Website Rewrites Capitol Riot History

Five years after a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol, the Trump administration is telling a very different story about what happened that day.

On the anniversary of the attack, the White House unveiled an official webpage calling the rioters patriots and blaming Democrats for everything that went wrong.

The site accuses Capitol Police of starting the violence, calls Mike Pence a coward, and claims the 2020 election was stolen.

Meanwhile, Democrats held their own hearing across town, where a 73-year-old former Trump supporter broke down in tears apologizing to the officers she once helped attack.

Website Calls Rioters Patriotic Americans

The White House webpage, titled “January 6: A Date Which Will Live in Infamy,” describes the roughly 1,600 people charged in connection with the riot as “patriotic citizens who had been viciously overcharged, denied due process, and held as political hostages by a vengeful regime.”

The site says Democrats “masterfully reversed reality” after the attack by branding protesters as insurrectionists.

White House communications director Steven Cheung suggested the webpage was a “trap” designed to spark outrage from the media.

Democrats Blamed for Certifying Election

The webpage claims “it was the Democrats who staged the real insurrection by certifying a fraud-ridden election, ignoring widespread irregularities, and weaponizing federal agencies to hunt down dissenters.”

That claim directly contradicts the rulings of dozens of courts that rejected Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

The site repeats Trump’s long-standing claim that the election was stolen from him, despite no evidence of widespread fraud ever being proven in court.

Site Accuses Police of Starting Violence

The White House timeline claims that around 1:10 p.m. on January 6, 2021, “Capitol Police aggressively fire tear gas, flash bangs, and rubber munitions into crowds of peaceful protesters, injuring many and deliberately escalating tensions.”

This contradicts even Trump’s own words from January 8, 2021, when he said, “To demonstrators who infiltrated the Capitol: you have defiled the seat of American democracy. To those who engage in the acts of violence and destruction: you do not represent our country.”

Pence Called Coward for Doing His Job

The website accuses former Vice President Mike Pence of “cowardice and sabotage” for refusing to delay the certification of the 2020 election results.

Pence himself, legal scholars from across the political spectrum, and many of Trump’s own aides have said it would have been unconstitutional for the vice president to reject electoral votes.

The site makes no mention of rioters erecting a gallows on the Capitol lawn and chanting for Pence to be hanged.

140 Officers Injured, One Died After

About 140 officers were injured in the riot that caused extensive damage to the Capitol building.

Officer Brian Sicknick was assaulted by rioters, suffered strokes and died the day after the attack. Four other officers who responded that day later died by suicide.

The White House page claims no “law enforcement officers lost their lives” and does not mention Sicknick by name.

Trump Pardoned 1,600 on Day One

On January 20, 2025, Trump granted clemency to all individuals convicted or awaiting trial over the breach, roughly 1,600 people.

Many of the pardoned rioters had prior convictions for rape, child sexual exploitation, domestic violence, manslaughter, and drug trafficking.

One defendant, Peter Schwartz, had 38 prior convictions dating back to 1991, including assault with a deadly weapon and battery.

23 Pardoned Rioters Charged With New Crimes

A report released by the House Judiciary Committee detailed that 23 of those pardoned by Trump have since committed additional crimes, including violent assault, possession of child sexual abuse material, and plotting to kill an FBI agent.

Six of the pardoned defendants are now charged with committing child sex crimes.

One pardoned rioter, Matthew Huttle, was shot and killed by a sheriff’s deputy during a traffic stop just days after receiving clemency.

Democrats Hold Counter-Hearing at Capitol

House Democrats reconvened the disbanded January 6 Committee on the anniversary to hear testimony from Capitol Police officers, former lawmakers, and a rioter who rejected her pardon.

“It is still January 6 in America,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin, who led the House impeachment proceedings against Trump after the 2021 riot. “And it will be until the forces of strong, nonviolent democracy prevail.”

Republicans did not participate in the hearing.

MAGA Granny Rejects Pardon in Tears

Pamela Hemphill, the 73-year-old known as the “MAGA Granny,” testified at the hearing and apologized to Capitol Police officers through tears.

“Once I got away from the MAGA cult and started educating myself about January the sixth, I knew what I did was wrong,” she said.

“When Donald Trump pardoned us, I rejected the pardon. Accepting that pardon would be lying about what happened on January the sixth. I am guilty, and I own that guilt.”

Proud Boys Leader Marches to Capitol

Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio led about 100 supporters in a march from the White House to the Capitol, retracing the route rioters took five years earlier.

Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy for orchestrating the January 6 attack, and was among more than 1,500 defendants pardoned when Trump returned to office.

At the march, Tarrio called for prosecutors who charged January 6 defendants to be “fired and prosecuted.”

Two Americas Mark the Same Day

Five years after the riot, there is no shared understanding of what happened.

Democrats gathered to decry the storming of Congress while the White House declared that Democrats were the real insurrectionists.

The official plaque honoring the police who defended the Capitol has never been hung. The pardoned Proud Boys leader calls it a victory.

The woman who rejected her pardon calls it a crime. Both walked the same streets that day, five years apart.

Visit the U.S. Capitol in Washington

The building that was breached on January 6, 2021 is open to the public for free guided tours.

The U.S. Capitol Visitor Center sits beneath the East Plaza and offers exhibits on Congress and the legislative process.

Tours run Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. , and advance reservations are recommended through the official Capitol website.

The tour does not include the House or Senate chambers when Congress is in session, but you can request passes through your representative’s office to watch from the galleries.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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