Former US Admiral Blasts Donald Trump Rally

A retired U.S. Admiral has criticized Donald Trump for calling those facing charges over the January 6 Capitol riots "hostages" and "patriots" who had been unfairly treated.

James Stavridis, a former four-star naval officer who once served as a Supreme Allied Commander at NATO, said he knew the true meaning of the words "hostages" and "patriots" and described the imprisoned rioters as "convicted felons."

On January 6, 2021, hundreds of people stormed the Capitol in Washington, D.C. after Trump supporters rallied outside to protest the 2020 election results. Trump had claimed without evidence that the election was stolen from him when President Joe Biden won in the polls. Many of those involved in the insurrection were jailed.

This year, Trump and Biden are set to go head-to-head once more in presidential elections in November as both men seek a second term in office. The topic of January 6 reared its head again following controversial claims made by Trump at a rally in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday.

An announcer kicked off the event by saying: "Please rise for the horribly and unfairly treated January 6 hostages," as Trump saluted. The crowd was then encouraged to remain standing to sing along to a song entitled "Justice for All" by the J6 Prison Choir, which features the voice of Trump reciting the pledge of allegiance.

Trump then addressed the crowd and referring to the January 6 prisoners said: "They've been treated terribly and very unfairly, and you know that, and everybody knows that. And we're going to be working on that soon, the first day we get into office, we're going to save our country, and we're going to work with the people to treat those unbelievable patriots—and they were unbelievable patriots and are."

It's not the first time Trump has described convicted January 6 rioters as "hostages." He made the same claim in November 2023 at a rally in Houston, Texas. "I call them the J6 hostages," he said. "Not prisoners. I call them the hostages."

His latest comments this weekend sparked condemnation, even among his former supporters.

Mike Pence, his two-time running mate and former vice president, told CBS News' "Face the Nation" show on Sunday: "At a time that there are American hostages being held in Gaza, that the president or any other leaders would refer to people that are moving through our justice system as hostages it's just unacceptable." He confirmed he would not be endorsing Trump's bid to seek a second term in the White House.

Former Admiral Stavridis also criticized Trump's claims on Sunday.

The ex-serviceman addressed the furor during a TV interview on MSNBC's Morning Joe and said: "I spent a fair amount of time in uniform trying to rescue hostages." A clip of his interview was shared on the social media site X (formerly Twitter) by the show's feed and can be viewed below:

Stavridis described various rescue missions trying to free hostages from terrorists in Colombia and Afghanistan. He said: "Those truly are hostages. Point being, I know what a hostage is. And that prison choir is not a bunch of hostages. Point two, I think I know what a patriot is. A patriot is someone who swears to defend the constitution of the United States[...] it is not an oath to the commander in chief."

"I'll close with this – the correct term for the prison choir: convicted felons," he added.

Newsweek has reached out to Trump's representatives by email seeking a response to Stavridis' and Pence's comments.