Only a few hours from being released from prison, Peter Navarro appeared on the stage at the Republican National Convention to address the large crowd there to support GOP nominee Donald Trump.
When Navarro, the one-time aide in the Trump administration, appeared on stage, the crowd gave him a raucous welcome.
Not long before his appearance, he was released from a Miami federal prison. He was behind bars after being convicted of contempt of Congress because he defied a subpoena that was issued to him by the now-defunct House January 6 select committee.
He was sentenced to four months behind bars back in March.
In his speech at the RNC this week, Navarro warned others about the possibility of political persecution.
As he said in his speech:
“Yes, indeed. This morning, I did walk out of a federal prison in Miami. Joe Biden and his department of injustice put me there. Tonight, I’m here with you in this beautiful city of Milwaukee. I got a very simple message for you: If they can come for me, if they can come for Donald Trump, be careful. They will come for you.
“Here’s how I got in prison. The legislative branch came for me first. Your favorite Democrat Nancy Pelosi created your favorite committee, the sham January 6 committee which demanded that I … violate executive privilege. What did I do? I refused.”
Navarro focused his comments on the Biden administration, heavily criticizing what they’ve done since taking off in January of 2021. He accused the administration of allowing many criminals to cross into the U.S. through the southern border with Mexico.
He further said that Democrats were essentially indoctrinating children with a lot of ideas about gender and race that are very damaging.
As Navarro said:
“I went to prison so you won’t have to. I am your wake-up call.”
While he was in jail at the Federal Correctional Institution in Miami, Navarro granted an exclusive interview to The Daily Caller. In that interview, he discussed the sentence he received, labeling him being sent to jail as a political move and criticizing the justice system as a whole in the process.
As he said in that interview:
“Lawfare is real. Lawfare is wrong. … We’re not supposed to act like Communist China or a Banana Republic. But, that’s the growing perception of our justice system.”
Navarro urged people in attendance at the RNC — and around the country — to rally behind Trump, warning that if the former president doesn’t return to the White House, then “their government [will] control us.”
As he continued:
“If we don’t control our government, their government will control us. If we don’t control all three branches of government — legislative, executive and judicial — their government will put some of us, like me and Steve Bannon, in prison.”
Navarro was the second former aide to Trump who was convicted of contempt of Congress. Bannon received a similar sentence of four months behind bars, but stayed free for a while as he was appealing the case.
