The fourth anniversary of January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has a new focus as lawmakers prepare for the prospect that the president-elect Donald Trump could soon pardon many of the more than 1,500 people charged with crimes for their actions related to the riot.
Trump said he would pardon the rioters on “day one” of his presidency, which begins January 20. “Most likely, I’ll do it very quickly,” he said recently on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” He added that “these people have suffered long and hard. And there may be some exceptions. I have to watch. But you know, if someone was radical, crazy.
His promise, made throughout his campaign for the White House, overshadows Monday’s events as lawmakers gather to certify a presidential election for the first time since 2021, when Trump supporters marched into the Capitol and temporarily halted the certification of an election he lost to Democrat Joe. Biden.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said she has spoken at length with Trump and is pressuring him to pardon everyone who participated in the siege. Few Republicans go that far, but many think it’s appropriate for Trump to consider pardons on a case-by-case basis.
“Here we are almost four years later. Many of these people have been in prison since 2021. Even those who fought the Capitol Police and caused damage to the Capitol, I think they have served their time and I think they should all be pardoned and released from prison.” , Greene said. “Some of these people were sentenced to prison terms: 10 years, 18 years and more. I think it’s an injustice. It’s a two-tier justice system, and it’s time to end it.
More than 1,250 people have pleaded guilty or been found guilty in trials related to January 6, and more than 650 of them have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from a few days to 22 years.
Many of those who broke into the Capitol echoed Trump’s false claims about election fraud. Some rioters menacingly called out the names of prominent politicians — particularly then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and then-Vice President Mike Pence, who refused to try to object to Biden’s victory. Lawmakers who evacuated both chambers on Jan. 6 returned overnight to finish their work.
The police officers who defended the Capitol are particularly outraged at the possible pardons. Many police officers were beaten, some with their own weapons, as they tried to hold back the crowds. About 140 police officers were injured on Jan. 6, making it “probably the largest single-day mass attack on law enforcement” in American history, said Matthew Graves, the outgoing U.S. attorney in the national capital.
“You cannot be pro-police and pro-rule of law if you forgive the people who betrayed that trust, injured police officers and ransacked the Capitol,” said Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, who retired due to injuries after fighting rioters.
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Some congressional Republicans, even those closely aligned with Trump, have suggested that not all January 6 offenders should be treated equally.
Rep. Jim Jordan, a top Trump ally who heads the House Judiciary Committee, said he supports some pardons but also made a distinction.
“For people who have not committed any violence, I think everyone supports that. I think it makes sense,” said Jordan, R-Ohio.
Veteran Republican Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., also wasn’t willing to go as far as Greene. “You have to look at it individually. Some probably deserve to be pardoned,” he said.
But he was more reticent when asked whether those who attacked the U.S. Capitol police should be among those pardoned.
” My God. Again, I would have to look at the scenario,” he said. “But if they attack the U.S. Capitol Police, that’s a big deal.”
Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., said not all charges are the same and that people who trespassed are a different category than those who entered the Capitol and damaged property. He said he believed Trump would look at each individual circumstance and decide what was appropriate.
“The people who attacked police officers, look, I don’t think that’s something we should ever tolerate,” Johnson said.
House Democrats, who led the campaign to impeach Trump on Jan. 6 and led a wide-ranging investigation into the attack, have warned that the pardons could have far-reaching consequences, both for the state of law and for the security of the country. Members of the extremist groups Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, for example, have been convicted of seditious conspiracy and other insurrection-related crimes.
“Those 140 or so law enforcement personnel who were injured defending this institution, I think anyone who loves peace and security would be offended if you pardoned the people who attacked those people for doing their job,” he said. said Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. .
Thompson led the House committee that investigated the events of January 6, concluding with a report that Trump “lit the fire” of the insurrection.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat, who served as lead impeachment manager during Trump’s second impeachment trial in which he was acquitted, said that if pardons were to take place, people should demand contrition and the repentance of each of the pardoned persons and an affirmative declaration. they no longer pose a threat to public safety.
“Because anything that happens to these people, in a political context or in any other context, will basically be blamed on future President Donald Trump,” Raskin said.
Like the police officers who protected them, the lawmakers who were at the Capitol during the attack have a visceral reaction to the pardon talks, having narrowly escaped a mob that seemed determined to harm them.
Rep. Jim Himes, Democrat of Connecticut, who was trapped in the House gallery as rioters tried to break in below, said it would be “extraordinarily difficult” for him and many others if Trump moves forward with pardons.
“I’m pretty controlled and disciplined, but it would be really difficult,” Himes said. “Too many of us have had very personal experiences with people who are serving time or have been convicted. »