Alaniz, H.Dodson, K.Dmello, J.2025-07-162025-07-162021Journal of Criminal Justice and Law: Offical Journal of the Law and Public Policy Section of the Academy of Criminal Jusitce Science, 2021; 5(1):22-39https://hdl.handle.net/2440/146027The January 6, 2021, Capitol riot in Washington D.C. reflects one of the worst moments for democracy in U.S. History. Estimates indicate 10% of the individuals arrested following the Capitol riot had connections to far right militias and other right-wing extremist groups. To investigate the events that led up to the Capitol riot, this study provides a descriptive analysis of Trump’s public rhetoric between 2015-2020 citing tweets, speeches, and news interviews where his words created an environment for violence among his supporters prior to and throughout his presidency.en© University of Houston-Downtown. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Political Rhetoric; Violence; Insurgency; PreparednessJournal article2024-06-05683713Dmello, J. [0000-0001-8805-1061]