Kenosha GOP chair says '80% of people support' Kyle Rittenhouse while the rest simply 'can't stand Trump'
Erin Decker, chair of the Kenosha Republican Party, has said at least 80 percent of people support Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old vigilante who shot dead two rioters and injured another last weekend with an AR-15 style rifle. According to her, the other 20 percent are those who "can't stand" President Donald J. Trump. During an appearance on Fox & Friends Tuesday morning, ahead of Trump's visit to Kenosha, Decker said the majority of residents in the Wisconsin city backed the actions of Rittenhouse, who had been smacked over the head with a skateboard before he allegedly opened fire in self-defense.
Rittenhouse had reportedly joined some of his friends in Kenosha to help protect local businesses from looters and rioters amid protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake, who was shot seven times in front of his children and became paralyzed from the waist down as a result. Following a series of encounters that were captured on cellphone videos, it emerged that Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber had died of gunshot wounds while Gaige Grosskreutz was shot in the arm.
Witness accounts and cellphone footage indicate that Rittenhouse opened fire after being cornered on the street by members of the crowd. The teenager was arrested the following day has been charged with murder. Rittenhouse's family members and legal representation have received a groundswell of support from conservative as well as moderate Americans who have argued he was simply defending a city whose authorities had let the violence spiral out of control.
Decker also echoed similar sentiments in her interview with Fox & Friends.
"It looks like it was self-defense, and, talking to people around the area, I would say about 80 percent of the people support what Kyle did," she said, and added that the rest "are probably the people that can't stand Donald Trump and can't stand anything conservative or Republican, so they're just going to attack anything that resembles that."
Meanwhile, Rittenhouse is remanded in custody in his home state of Illinois. He is scheduled to appear before a judge on September 25 for an extradition hearing.
According to Decker, the majority of Kenosha residents were relieved when the president sent in the National Guard last week to contain the unrest across the city.
"I believe the same people that support Donald Trump are happy that he came into the city—or sent troops into the city—and that includes Republicans, independents, and Democrats," she insisted. "I believe they're the same people that support Kyle Rittenhouse."
Trump appeared to defend Rittenhouse at a White House briefing last night, saying he'd been "very violently attacked" before he opened fire. "He was trying to get away from them I guess, it looks like, and he fell on then they very violently attacked him," the POTUS said. "It was something that we are looking at right now and it's under investigation, but I guess he was in very big trouble. He probably would've been killed. It's under investigation," he added.
John Pierce, Rittenhouse's attorney, also defended his client during an appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight on Monday. "This is 100 percent self-defense," Pierce said. "The only individuals Kyle shot were the three individuals attacking him and putting him at risk."
"This is a 17-year-old kid, this is amazing what he did," he added.