Former President Donald Trump said Thursday those detained and imprisoned for their alleged roles in the events of Jan. 6, 2021, are "hostages."
Trump took to the stage for a campaign rally at offshore drilling company Trendsetter Engineering Incorporated in the Houston area while Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA" played, a staple for his campaign stops.
After the song ended, Trump stood and saluted as "Justice For All" began playing. It's a version of "The Star-Spangled Banner" sung by the J6 Prison Choir, with Trump reciting the Pledge of Allegiance spliced throughout the song. The chorus chants "USA! USA! USA!" at the end.
"You know what that was?" Trump asked the crowd. "I call them the J6 hostages — not prisoners. I call them the hostages, what's happened. And it's a shame. You know, they did that and asked me whether or not I would partake and do the beautiful words. And I said yes, I would. The spirit was incredible."
The song debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's digital song sales on March 25, with 33,000 sold downloads from March 10-16. The track also drew 442,000 official U.S. streams and 25,000 in U.S. radio audience March 10-16, Billboard reported.
It had more than double the sales of the second-most sold song, Miley Cyrus' "Flowers," which had more than 10,400 downloads, according to Forbes.
"I thought maybe this would be an appropriate place. It certainly is an appropriate state," Trump said. "I love Texas. It's big and strong; and the people are big and strong, too. So I thought you'd like to hear that."
Proceeds for the song benefit family members of those who have been incarcerated in connection to the events of Jan. 6, though recipients will be vetted to ensure funds do not go to anyone who assaulted police officers, Forbes reported.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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