“Trump Cultivated a Culture That Embraced Political Violence”: Collins Calls Out Gessler Over Colorado Case Being a Trump Victory

Jo ShawNov 26, 2023

Minute Read

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins interviewed Scott Gessler, a former Republican Secretary of State from Colorado and lawyer for Trump. During the interview, Gessler persistently asserted that Trump had instructed the deployment of the National Guard, a claim refuted by Collins. In the discussion of the Colorado case ruling, she consistently questioned Trump’s lawyer, Gessler, about how the verdict, which found Trump engaged in insurrection, could be perceived as a victory by the legal team.

Pretty Satisfied With the Outcome

The interview began with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins asking about Trump’s reaction to the ruling. Gessler stated that he had not spoken to the former president, but he and his legal team were “pretty satisfied with the outcome.”

Acting With Specific Intent

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Collins shared part of the Judge’s ruling, which stated that “Trump acted with the specific intent to incite political violence and direct it at the Capitol with the purpose of disrupting the electoral certification.”

The Textual and Historical Meaning

Collins then asked Gessler what Trump’s legal team’s argument would be to the Colorado Supreme Court if the plaintiffs appealed. Gessler responded by stating that the legal team was almost certain there would be an appeal, and the team would argue the “textual and historical analysis of the 14th Amendment.”

People Get To Choose Their President

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Gessler further declared that the Constitution was set up in a way that “people get to choose who is their President” and “we shouldn’t have courts striking people from the ballot.”

Court Is Flat Out Wrong

Gessler told Collins in the interview, “We’re obviously going to take on the court’s erroneous argument that President Trump engaged in an insurrection. We think that’s just flat-out wrong, and contrary to the evidence.”

Trump Embraced Political Violence

Judge Wallace wrote in her ruling, which consisted of over a hundred pages, that “Trump cultivated a culture that embraced political violence through his consistent endorsement of the same.”

Judge Is Not a Fan of Trump

Gessler stated, “I think pretty clearly she is not a fan of President Trump.” He continued, “But to be honest with you, normally courts will rule on jurisdictional issues, will rule on whether the law applies before going into all of that.”

It’s Antidemocratic to Strike Trump From Ballot

Gessler stated, “But at the end of the day, the voters of Colorado are going to be able to make the choice, not a court, and we’re thankful that she respected the role of voters and stopped the, sort of, efforts or at least the effort in Colorado, which is antidemocratic, trying to strike President Trump off the ballot.”

Ruling Has No Legal Authority

Collins had repeatedly asked Gessler, “ Do you still really view this as a win here?” Gessler stated, “At the end of the day, she ruled for us and properly so,” he said. “And this, you know, is her opinion on what happened. But it has no legal authority at all because of her ruling.”

Trump Deployed the National Guard, Insisted Gessler

In his live interview, Gessler maintained that Trump had acted to mobilize the National Guard, a statement refuted by the acting secretary of defense, Christopher Miller, on Jan 6. “Just because there wasn’t a specific written document doesn’t mean it didn’t happen,” Gessler argued.

No Substantial Proof That Was the Case

Collins emphasized that Patel, a prominent figure in Trump’s administration, failed to provide substantial evidence supporting Gessler’s claim and brought up the fact that Trump had blamed the former House Speaker for not calling the National Guard, “even though it was in his authority,” she stated.

Trump Pushed Blame on Pelosi

Previously, Trump asserted that then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was accountable for not mobilizing National Guard troops. However, Pelosi did not possess the authority to issue such an order. Trump had earlier claimed that Pelosi “turned down the offer” to deploy troops, stating in an interview, “If she didn’t turn down the soldiers, you wouldn’t have had Jan. 6.”

Trump Did Not Authorize the National Guard

Gessler stated, “We thought the evidence was very clear, that he made efforts to ensure he authorized the National Guard, to make sure that they were available to prevent this type of violence. If you look at his actual tweets — ” Collins quickly interrupted Gessler and declared, “He didn’t authorize the National Guard that day,” “He did. He did,” said Gessler.

There Was No Evidence

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Collins countered Gessler’s attempts to persist in disseminating the assertion that Trump authorized the National Guard. Collins told Gessler, “Well, Kash Patel, his former aide, testified that as one of your witnesses.” She added, “But when he was asked for any documentation or any evidence that Trump had done that, he didn’t provide any.”

AP Fact Check Refuted Claims

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An Associated Press fact check from 2022 also struck down claims that Trump had ordered the deployment of the National Guard and accusations surrounding Nancy Pelosi’s involvement. The article read, “Trump was not involved in decision-making related to the National Guard on Jan. 6, and Pelosi did not stand in their way.”

Trump Did Not Sign Any Order

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The AP fact check further stated, “There is no evidence that Trump actually signed any order requesting 10,000 Guard troops, let alone 20,000, for Jan. 6.” And further said, “When the rioting started, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser requested more Guard help, on behalf of the Capitol Police. That request was made to Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, who then went to Miller, who approved it.”

Pelosi Had No Authority

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The AP fact check concluded, “Neither Pelosi nor the House sergeant at arms could have stopped an ordered deployment of National Guard troops because Congress doesn’t control the National Guard, legal experts say.”

A Scathing Ruling

Collins stated at the end of the interview, “Yup. Still, quite a scathing ruling that he acted with intent to incite political violence.”

A Spooge-Induced Judge

Larry Schweikart, a retired professor of history, wrote on X in response to the interview, “Big win. Doesn’t matter what a spooge-induced judge “says” only what he RULED…”