‘We Should Stand By the Cop’: House Republican Slams Trump’s $5 Million Settlement With Family of Ashli Babbitt

Dan Abrams, the founder and owner of Mediaite, interviewed Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) in the latest episode of his podcast, and the two both condemned the recent news that the Department of Justice had agreed to a $5 million settlement for the family of Ashli Babbitt as a betrayal of law enforcement.

Babbitt was among the rioters at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 and was seen on video with a group that was attempting to break through the entrance to the Speaker’s Lobby, trying to break down a barricaded door and breaking the glass in the window next to the door, the final security perimeter outside the House chamber where members of Congress and staff were sheltering. Police shouted warnings at her and the other rioters to stop. Babbitt attempted to crawl through the broken window when a Capitol Police officer fired a shot, hitting her in the shoulder. She was administered first aid and taken to a nearby hospital, where she died.

President Donald Trump has frequently spoken about Babbitt, calling her death a “murder” and “unthinkable,” and praising her for being a loyal supporter. Her name has been used as a MAGA rallying cry.

Babbitt’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit, and initially, the DOJ fought the litigation, having found insufficient evidence her civil rights had been violated and finding that it was reasonable for the officer to have believed he was firing the shot in self-defense or in defense of the lawmakers and staff in the chamber behind them. A Capitol Police investigation also cleared the officer.

The DOJ’s stance on the lawsuit flipped, however, after Trump took office for his second term. Earlier this month, attorneys representing her estate and the DOJ informed the court that a settlement had been reached. According to The Washington Post, the settlement amount was just under $5 million.

Abrams spoke with Bacon about the settlement, saying that he had “a big problem” with it “from a pro-law enforcement perspective,” and pointing out that both the DOJ and Capitol Police had investigated. The officer “was doing the best he could in incredibly difficult circumstances,” said Abrams, but this settlement means that the Trump administration “believe[s] that he did something wrong.”

The congressman, who was at the Capitol that day, said he was also “a pro-cop guy” and over 140 officers were injured during the riot. He commented that Babbitt had been “warned not to go through that window” by an officer who had his gun drawn. This was important, said Bacon, because “this was the last barrier to members of Congress.” That officer’s “duty was to defend the congressmen and women that were there…but she just proceeded to go through that window anyway,” and so “he did what he felt like he had to do to defend the members of Congress that were behind him, and I don’t know that he had much other choice.”

“I agree with you — we should stand by the cop,” Bacon said.

“It’s amazing, the hypocrisy we see on both sides of this,” said Abrams, noting that “suddenly the left loves the Capitol Police,” but did not extend that same feeling towards local sheriffs and police officers, and then it was “just the opposite” for conservatives “who are typically pro-police” and voice support for local police but then condemned the Capitol Police who were also doing their jobs.

Bacon concurred, and added that he felt he was “an American first,” and “not a Republican first,” and he preferred to do “what’s morally right” than “just follow the crowd of one party or the other party.”

Watch the vide above via YouTube.

Tune into The Dan Abrams Show live on SiriusXM at 2pm-3pm ET on POTUS 124.