“Imagine Having Your Opinion Endorsed by Putin”: Former Press Secretary Claims Trump of Tried to “Spin” Indictments

Michelle HollandNov 29, 2023

Minute Read

Sarah Matthews, a former deputy press secretary for Donald Trump, has come out against the former president and explained the role she believes he played in the January 6 Capitol riot.

The January 6 Capitol Riot

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On January 6, 2021, thousands of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building in an attempt to overthrow the results of the 2020 presidential election. The incident came following two months of Donald Trump promoting the lie that the election was “stolen” from him and that Joe Biden was not the rightful winner.

Trump’s Criminal Indictment

Trump was later federally charged for his role in sparking the event and his broader plans to overthrow Democracy by reinstating himself as president. The case is expected to go to trial next March, and it is just one of six legal battles that the former president is currently embroiled in, including four of a criminal nature.

Trump’s Reelection Bid

Despite this, Trump remains the frontrunner to lead the Republican Party into the 2024 presidential election. The nominee will be decided in the upcoming GOP primary races, but Trump currently possesses a significant lead in polls over his competitors.

Sarah Matthews Speaks Out

In a recent interview for WKYC, a radio station based in Cleveland, Ohio, Matthews discussed her time working for the Trump administration and offered her take on January 6. She claimed that Trump’s election bid is simply an effort to “spin all of these legal troubles that he knew were going to catch up to him.”

Delaying the Trials

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Trump has made several moves in order to try to delay and postpone some of his trials, with experts speculating that he wants them pushed back to after the election. Though there is no rule that those in prison cannot run for president, a conviction is likely to harm his campaign.

Politically Motivated

Matthews suggested that Trump could spin his legal battles to portray them as “politically motivated and then say that it’s a violation of his freedom of speech because he should be allowed to campaign and talk about these things with voters that he’s trying to court.”

“The Rematch From Hell”

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Matthews has dubbed the idea of another presidential race between Trump and Biden as “the rematch from hell.” She elaborated, “No one wants to have these two old men running against each other. I mean, look, Biden is 80, Trump is 77. And I can’t believe we’re having this rematch. And I think that there are better options on both sides for people.”

A Culture of Fear

Previously, in her testimony to Congress about the Capitol riot, Matthews claimed that: “There were people who were higher ranking than me at the White House who knew way more than I did, but were too scared of Donald Trump or too concerned with their own ambition and job prospects to come forward and tell the truth.”

Prioritizing Career Ambition

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Matthews continued, “I just think that any normal, sane person would have come forward after witnessing the events of January 6th and shared what they knew. But I guess that’s Washington for you. More people are concerned with their own jobs and ambition.”

Republican Cowardice

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Many Republicans have been accused of cowardly behavior and enabling Trump’s crimes for only speaking out against the former president once he was no longer president. As well as this, many whistleblowers have remained anonymous in fear of retribution from Trump.

Trump’s Role in January 6

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Recently released tapes also backed up Matthews’ claims of Trump’s involvement in the Capitol riots. The new audio, from an interview two months after the events, featured Trump claiming that he could’ve stopped the insurrection. “I was going to […] I was thinking about going back during the problem to stop the problem, doing it myself.”

“I Could’ve Done That”

Trump added, “I could’ve done that. And you know what? I would have been very well received. Don’t forget, the people that went to Washington that day, in my opinion, they went because they thought the election was rigged. That’s why they went.”

Admitting MAGA Responsibility

One online forum user explained that the quotes demonstrated Trump’s culpability in the incident. They wrote: “So this is Trump saying it wasn’t Antifa then, right? These were his guys. They weren’t sent by Pelosi or whatever conspiracy theory is coming out of the right-wing cesspools. It’s a line I’ve often heard from my relatives in the cult, but I often wonder if they even believe it themselves.”

The Electoral College Votes

Another person stated, “In Trump’s mind, “the problem” that needed to be stopped was not the insurrection, but rather the counting of electoral college votes. He thinks if he had gone down to the Capitol he could have stopped the count and remained POTUS after Jan 20th.”

Leading the Insurrection

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Someone else concurred: “If he actually wanted to stop it he didn’t need to go down there. He wanted to lead the insurrection in person.”

Political Persecution

Many people have agreed with Matthews’ assessment that Trump is attempting to spin his trials to seem like political persecution and make himself into a martyr. In response to recent Trump remarks calling the imprisoned January 6 rioters “hostages”, one poster said: “Trump used the word hostages to conflate Hamas with the DOJ. He chose his words carefully there.”

Putin Weighs In

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Previously, Russian President Vladimir Putin also supported the myth that Trump’s indictments were simply political suppression, calling it the “persecution of a political rival,” leading one online critic to declare: “Imagine having your opinion endorsed by Putin and still being the Republican frontrunner. Insane.”