BWASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) - Former president Donald Trump said Capitol police officers who sued him over injuries they sustained during the Jan 6 riot are "grasping at straws" to link him to the attack, arguing they should blame Washington's mayor and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi instead.
He made the argument in a filing late Monday seeking dismissal of a suit accusing him of conspiring with members of right-wing militia groups and Republican political operative Roger Stone, among others, to trigger the storming of the Capitol to overturn his 2020 election loss.
"Public documents show it was President Trump who acted to protect Washington, DC in the lead-up to Jan 6, 2021, by authorising the National Guard to protect the Capitol complex," Mr Trump's lawyer said in the filing.
"Both congressional officials answering to Speaker Pelosi and Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, however, rejected that offer."
Mr Trump, who at 75 is weighing a 2024 run for the White House, also argues in his filing that the complaint failed to show evidence of a conspiracy, citing his "garden-variety political discourse asking supporters to fight for their beliefs".
A lawyer for the officers stood by their claims.
"We are confident that our amended complaint alleged in detail former president Trump's participation in the unlawful conspiracy and other unlawful acts," Mr David Brody said in a statement.
"The former president, by his own words and deeds, sought to illegally overturn the outcome of the election in a manner unprecedented in American history."
The officers are represented by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
Mr Trump was widely criticised for falsely telling his supporters at a rally before the attack that the election was stolen and urging them to "fight like hell".
About 140 officers were injured as his supporters breached the Capitol through broken windows and ransacked lawmakers' offices.
He waited hours to call for an end to the violence, eventually telling the rioters to go home and adding: "We love you. You're very special."
