Kyle Rittenhouse, who could face a lifelong prison sentence if he’s found guilty of homicide after fatally shooting two people during last summer’s protests, might have a job offer from a Republican in Congress if he’s acquitted.
Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said his office may ask Rittenhouse, 18, to consider working on Capitol Hill.
“Kyle Rittenhouse would probably make a pretty good congressional intern,” Gaetz said during a Wednesday night appearance on Newsmax. “We may reach out to him and see if he’d be interested in helping the country in additional ways.”
Jury deliberations continue after Rittenhouse’s homicide trial concluded Monday in Wisconsin. Rittenhouse pleaded not guilty after he fatally shot two people and injured a third during protests in Kenosha, Wis., in August 2020.
The case has prompted fierce debate over the line between self-defense and violent vigilantism, The Washington Post reported. The jury has been deliberating the teen’s fate since Tuesday.
Kyle Rittenhouse jurors finish first day of deliberations without reaching a verdict
Gaetz, an outspoken conservative, said Rittenhouse deserves a not-guilty verdict. The congressman, who has previously said the teen acted in self-defense, is one of several Republicans to publicly defend Rittenhouse.
J.D. Vance, who’s running for Senate in Ohio, called Rittenhouse’s trial a “farce” this week. Last year, Florida state Rep. Anthony Sabatini tweeted that Rittenhouse should run for Congress, prompting some to call for the lawmaker’s resignation. And former president Donald Trump weighed in on the case soon after the shooting, saying Rittenhouse “probably would have been killed” had he not fired his weapon.
A tense calm in Kenosha as Rittenhouse verdict looms
Protestors demonstrated outside the courthouse in Kenosha, Wis., on Nov. 17 as jurors continued their deliberations in the homicide trial of Kyle Rittenhouse. (Jorge Ribas, Laura Dyan Kezman/The Washington Post)
Rittenhouse was carrying a semiautomatic rifle on Aug. 25, 2020, during protests that broke out after Jacob Blake was shot by police in Kenosha. Rittenhouse, then 17, fatally shot Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26. He also shot and injured Gaige Grosskreutz, who was 26 at the time.
While prosecutors have argued that Rittenhouse acted recklessly, provoking violence by showing up with a loaded weapon, Rittenhouse and his legal team say he was acting in self-defense and was there to protect businesses. The case drew nationwide attention following months of Black Lives Matter protests in cities across the country.
“I defended myself,” Rittenhouse said on the stand last week.
Gaetz, during Wednesday’s Newsmax appearance, sounded off on another high-profile legal case that wrapped up earlier that day. Jacob Chansley, the man who wore face paint and a horned cap during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, was sentenced on Wednesday to 41 months in prison — an outcome Gaetz claimed “defies justice.”
“This QAnon shaman is, like, a relatively harmless nonviolent vegan,” he told Newsmax host Grant Stinchfield.
The federal judge who sentenced Chansley on Wednesday said while he believed the man was “genuine in [his] remorse,” he called what he did on Jan. 6 “horrific.”
“This assault on democracy was repugnant,” he said, adding: “What you did here was actually obstruct the functioning of the whole government.”
Stinchfield, the Newsmax host, told Gaetz he might face competition in trying to hire Rittenhouse.
“I want him here at Newsmax,” the host said. “Maybe he can be a Stinchfield intern, too. He’ll have all kinds of job offers.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said his office may ask Rittenhouse, 18, to consider working on Capitol Hill.
“Kyle Rittenhouse would probably make a pretty good congressional intern,” Gaetz said during a Wednesday night appearance on Newsmax. “We may reach out to him and see if he’d be interested in helping the country in additional ways.”
Jury deliberations continue after Rittenhouse’s homicide trial concluded Monday in Wisconsin. Rittenhouse pleaded not guilty after he fatally shot two people and injured a third during protests in Kenosha, Wis., in August 2020.
The case has prompted fierce debate over the line between self-defense and violent vigilantism, The Washington Post reported. The jury has been deliberating the teen’s fate since Tuesday.
Kyle Rittenhouse jurors finish first day of deliberations without reaching a verdict
Gaetz, an outspoken conservative, said Rittenhouse deserves a not-guilty verdict. The congressman, who has previously said the teen acted in self-defense, is one of several Republicans to publicly defend Rittenhouse.
J.D. Vance, who’s running for Senate in Ohio, called Rittenhouse’s trial a “farce” this week. Last year, Florida state Rep. Anthony Sabatini tweeted that Rittenhouse should run for Congress, prompting some to call for the lawmaker’s resignation. And former president Donald Trump weighed in on the case soon after the shooting, saying Rittenhouse “probably would have been killed” had he not fired his weapon.
A tense calm in Kenosha as Rittenhouse verdict looms
Protestors demonstrated outside the courthouse in Kenosha, Wis., on Nov. 17 as jurors continued their deliberations in the homicide trial of Kyle Rittenhouse. (Jorge Ribas, Laura Dyan Kezman/The Washington Post)
Rittenhouse was carrying a semiautomatic rifle on Aug. 25, 2020, during protests that broke out after Jacob Blake was shot by police in Kenosha. Rittenhouse, then 17, fatally shot Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26. He also shot and injured Gaige Grosskreutz, who was 26 at the time.
While prosecutors have argued that Rittenhouse acted recklessly, provoking violence by showing up with a loaded weapon, Rittenhouse and his legal team say he was acting in self-defense and was there to protect businesses. The case drew nationwide attention following months of Black Lives Matter protests in cities across the country.
“I defended myself,” Rittenhouse said on the stand last week.
Gaetz, during Wednesday’s Newsmax appearance, sounded off on another high-profile legal case that wrapped up earlier that day. Jacob Chansley, the man who wore face paint and a horned cap during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, was sentenced on Wednesday to 41 months in prison — an outcome Gaetz claimed “defies justice.”
“This QAnon shaman is, like, a relatively harmless nonviolent vegan,” he told Newsmax host Grant Stinchfield.
The federal judge who sentenced Chansley on Wednesday said while he believed the man was “genuine in [his] remorse,” he called what he did on Jan. 6 “horrific.”
“This assault on democracy was repugnant,” he said, adding: “What you did here was actually obstruct the functioning of the whole government.”
Stinchfield, the Newsmax host, told Gaetz he might face competition in trying to hire Rittenhouse.
“I want him here at Newsmax,” the host said. “Maybe he can be a Stinchfield intern, too. He’ll have all kinds of job offers.”
