Congratulates Kyle Rittenhouse on acquittal: "If that's not self defense, nothing is!"

Following the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse, who shot three people (killing two) during civil unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Trump issued a congratulatory statement. "Congratulations to Kyle Rittenhouse for being found INNOCENT of all charges," he wrote. "It's called being found NOT GUILTY— And by the way, if that's not self defense, nothing is!" The statement aligned Trump with the vigilante violence that Rittenhouse had come to symbolize for the right.

"If that's not self defense, nothing is!" — Statement on Rittenhouse verdict