Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Capitol Rioter's Lawyer Throws Trump All The Way Under The Bus In Blunt Opening Statement

Capitol Rioter's Lawyer Throws Trump All The Way Under The Bus In Blunt Opening Statement
Department of Justice (DOJ); Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Samuel Shamansky, the attorney for Dustin Byron Thompson—a January 6 defendant who is on trial for several charges including theft of government property—took a clear shot at former Republican President Donald Trump during his opening statement.

Shamansky told jurors Trump was "spewing lies" before a mob of his supporters attacked the United States Capitol in a failed bid to overturn the results of the 2020 general election. He added Trump used his presidential authority to essentially "authorize this assault."


He went further, saying Thompson was acting at the direction of Trump and "his various conspirators" and added Trump was part of a "sinister plot" to get Thompson and other Trump supporters to "do his dirty work."

Notably, Shamansky said Thompson fell down a "rabbit hole" of conspiracy theories after losing his job earlier during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thompson was influenced by an "echo chamber" of falsehoods that the election had been stolen, he said, and had chosen to act "accordingly."

Shamansky's statements were not a surprise given he'd stated in a February court filing he planned to argue at trial that Thompson was acting at Trump's behest.

At the time, he said he wanted to issue subpoenas to compel Trump and former New York City Mayor and Trump personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani to appear as witnesses, pointing to statements both men made at the "Stop the Steal" rally ahead of the attack.

Trump's call for his supporters to "fight like hell" and Giuliani's suggestion they should engage in a "trial by combat," Shamansky argued, offer ample evidence Thompson took their directions to heart.

Although a judge ultimately denied the subpoena request, they ruled jurors could listen to recordings of the speeches Trump and Giuliani gave at the rally.

While those following the trial acknowledged Trump had incited the insurrection, they felt Shamansky's defense would not absolve his client of responsibility for participating in it.




One of the more prominent faces to emerge from the January 6 insurrection has also made headlines for making claims in their defense.

In January 2022, Jacob Chansley—the infamous self-proclaimed "QAnon Shaman" who made headlines worldwide after he was photographed wearing a horned fur headdress and war paint in red, white, and blue while carrying a spear as he participated in the storming of the United States Capitol–claimed he was simply trying to "calm the crowd" during the attack.

Chansley, who is currently behind bars in Oklahoma serving a 41-month prison sentence, blamed the media for making him the public "face" of the attack.

His mother—who previously referred to her son as a "patriot"—suggested Trump invited everyone to go to the Capitol and stressed she is passionate "about how wrong I think it is that he [Chansley] is even doing any time at all."

Trump has continued to profess that he is the victim of a political smear campaign at the hands of Democrats.

In recent months, he has pledged to pardon rioters in the event he is re-elected and urged his supporters to protest in the event prosecutors officially charge him with financial crimes.

More from People/donald-trump

Nancy Mace; Simone Biles
Win McNamee/Getty Images; Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix

Nancy Mace's Claim That No One Would Know Simone Biles' Name If Men Competed Against Her Gets Epically Fact-Checked

South Carolina MAGA Republican Representative Nancy Mace has been making a name for herself by being the most vulgar and vile anti-trans person in Congress. She's screamed transphobic slurs in official committee meetings and attacked anyone who opposes her bigotry.

Now she's decided to take on the most decorated gymnast in history—in women's and men's gymnastics—Simone Biles, who holds the record for the most Olympic and World Championship medals combined. Biles won 41 medals in just those events, surpassing all other gymnasts.

Keep ReadingShow less
JD Vance
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

Vance Tried To Make A Joke About Seeing 'Les Misérables' At The Kennedy Center—And It's Peak Cringe

Vice President JD Vance had people groaning after he made a bad joke about the production of Les Misérables he and his wife, Second Lady Usha Vance, attended at the Kennedy Center with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump.

The musical, set in 19th century France, tells the story of Jean Valjean, an ex-convict who is released from prison for stealing a loaf of bread. The story touches on timeless themes such as justice and mercy—and also happens to be about people resisting an authoritarian takeover, which many find ironic given the Trump administration's response to protests in Los Angeles.

Keep ReadingShow less
bride and groom cutting wedding cake
Wedding Dreamz on Unsplash

People Who Smashed Wedding Cake In Their Spouse's Face Reveal How Their Relationship Is Going Now

According to The Knot wedding resource magazine and website, smashing cake into the face of a spouse after tying the knot is a tradition tied to medieval England. To celebrate the marriage, the bride would toss a piece of piece of cake over her shoulder for good luck.

This evolved into newlyweds feeding a piece of cake to one another, then taking frosting or a small bit of cake and rubbing it gently onto each other's faces—usually the cheek or tip of the nose.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of U.S. Army veteran who criticized Donald Trump
@btnewsroom/TikTok

U.S. Army Vet Goes Viral With Blistering Speech Ripping Trump For Deploying Troops To L.A.

A U.S. Army veteran went viral after she spoke out to encourage other current and former military members to publicly condemn President Donald Trump for using them as "pawns" to suit his own ends after he deployed the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles amid ongoing protests against his administration's immigration raids.

Trump has activated over 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines, despite opposition from city and state leaders. He has painted a bleak picture of Los Angeles—claims that Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom say are wildly exaggerated.

Keep ReadingShow less
Barack and Michelle Obama
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

The Obamas Just Shared A Rare Family Photo With Their Adult Daughters To Celebrate Sasha's Birthday

Former President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama warmed hearts when they shared the same photo to their respective social media accounts, showing them with their adult daughters, Sasha and Malia, to commemorate Sasha's 24th birthday.

Sasha Obama was born in June 2001, nearly eight years before the family moved into the White House at the start of her father's first term in January 2009. She and her older sister, Malia, now 26, spent their formative years in the presidential residence, growing up there throughout their father’s two terms, until the family departed in 2017.

Keep ReadingShow less