Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, said Sunday on CBS News’ Face the Nation that it’s “really sad” that President-elect Donald Trump is still claiming victory in the 2020 election when he should be “triumphant” about his 2024 victory.
On Sunday, Newsweek sent an email to Trump’s press team seeking comment.
Why It Matters
Representative Pelosi has long been a vocal critic of Trump. She led the House for a portion of Trump’s first administration and was in charge when the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot broke out after Trump lost the 2020 election.
The president-elect continues to claim that he won the 2020 election over President Joe Biden, citing widespread voter fraud as the reason for his defeat, despite providing no evidence to back up his claims.
Trump did not meet with Biden prior to the 2020 presidential transition, continuing to dispute the results and delaying initial access to briefings. In total, 147 Republican lawmakers voted to overturn the 2020 election.
In the November 2024 presidential election, Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris. The results are scheduled to be certified on January 6, with no Democratic lawmakers expected to overturn them.
What To Know
On Monday, it will be four years since thousands of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, attempting to prevent Biden’s election victory from being certified. Rioters broke through security and gained access to the House floor, invading the offices of numerous elected officials, including Pelosi.
The House impeached Trump for “incitement of insurrection,” but the measure failed to secure the two-thirds majority needed for conviction in the Senate.
When Face the Nation host Margaret Brennan asked Pelosi on Sunday why “so many Americans decided that Donald Trump’s support for the rioters in 2020 should not disqualify him from a second term as president,” Pelosi cited economic factors as the most likely reason for Trump’s support in the 2024 election, in which he won the popular vote and the Electoral College.
“I don’t call this a disregard of January 6, I just call it something that they saw in their interest, economically,” Pelosi claimed.
Despite winning office again, Trump continues to claim victory in 2020. According to Brennan, on January 4, Trump watched segments of a documentary featuring conservative lawyer John Eastman, a supporter of the “Stop the Steal” movement.
Pelosi stated that “it’s really sad” that Trump continues to claim victory.
She went on to say, “It’s almost sick that he’s thinking like that in 2020. He’s won the election now, that’s clear…and tomorrow, he’ll accept the results of the Electoral College, so he should be triumphant—but to be still fighting a fight he knows he lost is really sad.”
Trump has pledged to pardon rioters when he takes office on January 20.
Over 1,500 people have been charged with crimes related to the riot, with over 1,000 of them convicted and sentenced. Of those sentenced, approximately two-thirds received prison time ranging from a few days to 22 years.
What People Are Saying
Former U.S. Police Sergeant Aquilino Gonell told the Washington Post that Trump’s promise to pardon rioters is “a betrayal, a stab in the heart.”
Liz Cheney, a former Republican Representative and Trump critic, wrote about Trump in an X, formerly Twitter, post on Friday: “You can’t change the truth and you can’t silence us.”
Remember all your lies about voting machines, election workers, and the numerous allegations of fraud that never occurred? Many of your lawyers have been sanctioned, disciplined, or barred from practicing law, the courts have ruled against you, and dozens of your own White House, administration, and campaign staff have testified against you.
Remember how you sent a mob to our Capitol, then watched the violence on television and refused for hours to tell the mob to leave? Remember how your former Vice President stopped you from overthrowing our republic?
We remember. And now, as you take office again, the American people must reject your latest malicious falsehoods and serve as the guardrails of our Constitutional Republic—to protect the America we cherish from you.”
In a December appearance on NBC News’ Meet the Press, President-elect Donald Trump stated, “I’m going to act very quickly [pardoning January 6 rioters]…”The first day. They’ve been in there for years, and it’s filthy and disgusting. It shouldn’t even be open.”
What Happens Next
Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee for nearly 100 days after Biden stepped down, will preside over the joint congressional session that certifies the results. Four years ago, Vice President Mike Pence defied Trump by certifying the results.
