Donald Trump boasts popularity has gone up since Jan 6 in Truth Social posting frenzy

Donald Trump claimed on his social media platform Truth Social that he has become more popular since the January 6 attack on the US Capitol building.

He posted the screenshot of an almost month-old analysis by CNN’s Harry Enten titled “Donald Trump has become more popular since the January 6 Capitol attack.”

In a posting spree on Tuesday, the former president — who has 3.4 million users on Truth Social — appeared to boast about the popularity he has gained since the deadly riots last year.

Meanwhile, the January 6 committee announced its next live in-person public hearing would take place next week with a focus on Mr Trump’s role in assembling the mob that would go on to attack the Capitol.

Mr Trump posted several other links on Truth Social, including a Breitbart piece titled “UN says Joe Biden’s Border is Deadliest Land Crossing in the World”. A link he shared from the Federalist website was titled: “Yes, Biden is Hiding His Plan to Rig the 2022 Midterm Elections.”

Last month, it was reported by TIME that downloads of Donald Trump’s Truth Social app had spiked after the former president made an appearance on the platform with a series of tirades in protest of the Jan 6 hearings.

He started posting about the hearings on 9 June, and the following day the app downloads rose by 185 per cent compared to the average of the seven days prior.

The former president had started his own social media company after his Twitter account was permanently suspended two days after the attack “due to the risk of further incitement of violence.”

Meanwhile, House January 6 select committee vice-chair Liz Cheney said earlier this week that the panel may yet make formal criminal referrals of the former president and his associates to the Department of Justice.