Convicted Capitol rioter Pam Hemphill—once referred to as the "MAGA granny"—told CNN correspondent Abby Phillip her reaction to former Republican President Donald Trump's attacks on Democratic President Joe Biden.
The interview took place on the eve of the anniversary of the insurrection Trump incited with his Big Lie about his loss to Biden.
After showing remarks by Biden and the mocking pushback by Trump—including imitating President Biden's stutter—CNN host Phillip asked Hemphill for her thoughts.
Phillip asked:
"What is your reaction to what you just heard there from [former] President Trump? Is Biden fearmongering about the fate of democracy here?"
Hemphill responded:
"Absolutely not. You know, that's MAGA—I don't know, way to explain it—they have this way of demeaning you and putting you down."
"And that's what they've got going right now is this huge gaslighting smear campaign going on, telling me it was a peaceful protest. I was there."
"I was there when they pushed those gates and those officers. And when they stepped on my head and it was an officer that saved my life that day."
Addressing her thoughts now on Donald Trump, Hemphill stated:
"Biden is right on with everything he's saying. Trump is a dangerous—and I mean dangerous—narcissist."
"He's a cult leader. He needs to be put in prison."
She added:
"They do nothing but lie about everything."
Of her need to speak out, Hemphill stated:
"I mean, I'm so tired of the narrative that they're putting out there. And that's why I speak out, because I have all the receipts."
"I was there."
"I know what happened that day and I hold Trump totally responsible."
You can see the segment here:
On social media, people were inclined to believe Hemphill's assessment.
Having been in MAGA to the point of marching on the Capitol when Trump told her to go gives her direct insight.
@ReallyAmerican1 Powerful, one of their own has broken free of the gaslighting. Didn't know that was possible. \xf0\x9f\x91\x8f\xf0\x9f\x91\x8f— (@)
@ffalcon52/X
Hemphill pleaded guilty to one count of "unlawful parading, demonstrating or picketing" and served two months in federal prison.
The 70-year-old Boise, Idaho grandmother showed almost immediate remorse after her participation in the riot that lead to at least five deaths, injuries to over 150 members of law enforcement and millions of dollars of property damage to the United States Capitol campus.
Since then Hemphill has made it her mission to call out Trump’s and MAGA's lies and misbehavior.
On Sunday, Hemphill took to X to skewer conservative rhetoric that continues to claim the insurrection was an FBI or other government agency conspiracy to discredit Trump and MAGA. The post included a video segment from fired Fox News personality Tucker Carlson titled "Here's What Really Happened On January 6th."
Hemphill wrote in response to Carlson's false claims:
"First they were saying the Truth about January 6, how 'it's what really happened on J6' as if we're blind; It's getting more ridiculous and their insanity is screaming louder than ever!"
Hemphill added:
"You [Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene] can't gaslight the people anymore, we know what we saw and heard from those criminal J6 defendants, if you're picking them over honorable Capitol Police officers, I hope you're thrown out of office as a disgrace to our country!"
@PamHemphill79/X
Hemphill added an appeal to Congress to rein in the liars and propagandists in their midst.
She captioned a video of the January 6, 2024 Washington DC protest rally by Look Ahead America:
"It's not getting any better, it's time for Congress @RepSpeier to take action and stop the J6 propaganda by those in office, start with telling people the FBI isn't weaponized against anyone; before it becomes out of hand!"
Look Ahead America was founded by former Trump campaign staffer Matt Braynard.
On the rally website, Look Ahead America included the lie the insurrection was peaceful, stating:
"This protest is to send the message that patriotic Americans have not forgotten the continuing abuses and injustices suffered by our brothers and sisters at the hands of the DOJ and FBI following their peaceful participation in Capitol protests three years ago."
"We will again raise our voices to tell the DOJ, the FBI, the Biden Administration, and the country that we demand pardons, clemency, and leniency for our fellow Americans who've been persecuted not for their actions but for their political beliefs."
The conspiracy theory the January 6, 2021 insurrection was instigated by FBI agents—not by Trump and his mob of supporters—has been promoted by Republicans like Greene and Senator Mike Lee.
Just as Trump’s Big Lie about his 2020 election loss convinced his fans to attack the seat of the United States Congress on January 6 to try to stop the certification of the election results, repeated lies about that day have swayed a significant number of people to ignore overwhelming evidence about the cause and ringleaders of the Capitol attack.
A Washington Post/University of Maryland poll released last week showed about 25 percent of Americans and over 30 percent of Republicans believe the Capitol riot was influenced by the FBI or other government agencies.
