Former Donald Trump economic adviser Peter Navarro has been waiting four months for this.
He spoke at the Republican convention hours after his release from federal prison to a cheering crowd, and gave his fiancée a passionate kiss onstage after criticizing prosecutors who have encouraged and infuriated his former boss.
“I went to prison so you don’t have to. I’m your wake-up call,” Navarro said, echoing an argument Trump also made after he was indicted, prosecuted and faces four criminal trials.
Navarro shared some personal updates with the public, revealing that he has a fiancée, Bonnie, who encouraged him when he entered prison after being convicted of defying a congressional subpoena.
“They didn’t say, ‘I love you.’ That was obvious. She just said, ‘We’ve got this under control. We’ve got this under control.'” She said Democrats don’t understand “they do this to families.”
He was out for four months before being released from prison Wednesday morning and flying straight to Milwaukee.
Peter Navarro, former director of the U.S. Bureau of Trade and Manufacturing, told a convention: “I went to prison so you don’t have to.”
He gave his fiancée a passionate kiss on stage, receiving more cheers from the audience who had given him sustained applause when he was introduced.
“It’s a very nice thing. I think they want to see the MAGA tattoo I got there,” he joked at the beginning of his speech.
He also attacked former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, another Trump target. “The legislative branch came for me first. Their favorite Democrat: Nancy Pelosi. The fake January 6th Committee,” he said, referring to the Democratic-led panel that framed the attack on the Capitol.
Lawmakers wanted to question Navarro about what he called the “Green Bay Sweep,” a name given by the Green Bay Packers to lawmakers to delay the electoral recount amid legal challenges to the vote.
“This morning I walked out of a federal prison in Miami. Joe Biden and his department of injustice put me there,” he said, before attacking one of Trump’s favorite complaints: judges and prosecutors.
That was Navarro’s version of a common Trump attack, blaming Biden personally for making decisions that the Justice Department and local prosecutors say are made by career officials.
“If they can come for me, if they can come for Donald Trump, watch out, they’re coming for you,” he said. He even mocked New York Judge Juan Marchan, who presided over Trump’s case over Stormy Daniels’ silence, which resulted in Trump’s conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Navarro gave a kiss to his fiancée Bonnie, who he said cheered him up when he reported to prison.
Navarro received a warm welcome from the audience.
He also mentioned Steve Bannon, who reported to prison in Connecticut after being convicted on similar charges.
Four months: “I think you guys just want to see my MAGA tattoo that I got there,” Navarro jokes about his time in prison
Navarro attacked prosecutors, judges and “the swamp,” complaining that he had been convicted by a jury in Washington, DC.
He criticized his own Obama-appointed judge and claimed he failed to get a fair trial in Washington, DC.
“Where was I thrown to the wolves of an anti-Trump jury? In the D.C. swamp,” Navarro said.
Shortly before his speech, Navarro said he “feels good” now that he is out of prison and that he would not repeat the conduct that led to his four-month prison sentence.
“Absolutely. This is not about me. This is about the Constitution. The doctrine of executive privilege goes back to the days of George Washington,” he told DailyMail.com at the Republican convention, when asked if he would do it again given what he’s been through.
“The American people understand that if you can get me, you can get them,” he said. As for prison, the economist said, “All I can say is that the weather was not bad. Everything else was like a prison.” He remained mum when asked about the details of his stay. “We’ll talk about that next week. I feel fine,” he said.