Trump defends pardoning of violent Jan. 6 offenders

President Trump on Tuesday defended signing mass pardons for rioters charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, including those who were violent offenders, a move that has drawn criticism from Democrats and some Republicans.

Trump, while taking questions from reporters at the White House after announcing a major AI initiative, brushed away the suggestion that he does not support law enforcement despite pardoning those charged with violently attacking Capitol Police. He went on to equate the pardons he signed with former President Biden’s pardons for family members and with criminals who don’t get charged.

Trump was asked why one of the Jan. 6 defendants who used a stun gun on a police officer during the riot deserved to be pardoned, to which Trump responded: “I don’t know, was it a pardon? Because we’re looking at commutes and we’re looking at pardons.”

“We’ll take a look at everything,” Trump told reporters in the Roosevelt Room of the White House. “But I can say this. Murderers today are not even charged. You have murderers that aren’t charged all over.

“These people have already served years in prison, and they’ve served them viciously. It’s a disgusting prison. It’s horrible. It’s been inhumane,” Trump added.

Asked specifically about his decision to commute the sentences of former Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders who were charged with plotting to forcibly halt the peaceful transfer of power in 2020, Trump argued they had served enough time.

“These people have served years of jail, and their lives have been ruined,” Trump said. “They’ve served years in jail, and, if you look at the American public, the American public is tired of it.”

In defending the Jan. 6 pardons, Trump referenced protests in Seattle in 2020, when activists occupied parts of the city after clashing with law enforcement officials. And he claimed multiple times that murderers are not even charged, though he did not specify who he was referring to before shifting to the topic of immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

Trump also at one point shifted the topic to pardons issued by his predecessor just before leaving office.

Biden on Monday morning announced preemptive pardons for multiple family members, for retired Gen. Mark Milley and for members of the House panel that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Biden explained that he was issuing the pardon not charged with crimes because he worried they would be targeted by politically motivated investigations.

“Joe Biden gave a pardon yesterday to a lot of criminals. These are criminals that he gave a pardon to. And you should be asking that question,” Trump told a reporter.

Trump on Monday night in one of his first official acts as president granted roughly 1,500 “full, complete and unconditional pardons” for rioters charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. There have been 1,583 total defendants charged.

About 600 Jan. 6 defendants were accused of assaulting, resisting or impeding police. Ten defendants were convicted of sedition, the crown jewel of the Justice Department’s sprawling prosecution.

The pardons, which Trump repeatedly promised during the 2024 campaign, came under scrutiny from some lawmakers on Tuesday, including by some in his own party.

“House Republicans are celebrating pardons issued to a bloodthirsty mob that violently assaulted police officers on January 6, 2021. What happened to backing the Blue?” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) posted Tuesday on Threads.

“No one should excuse violence. And particularly violence against police officers,” former Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told Semfaor.

Topics

Trump pardons nearly 1,600 Jan. 6 defendants

On his first day in office, President Trump pardoned and commuted the sentences of nearly 1,600 people convicted of offenses related to the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol. Among them are ...
CBS News - 3h
GOP senators criticize Trump over pardoning violent Jan. 6 rioters

Politico - 9h
Trump defends Jan. 6 pardons of violent criminals

Trump said his pardons and commutations for Jan. 6 defendants were justified, and argued that people who commit violent crime in other cities don't get charged.
NBC News - 3h
Breaking down Trump's pardons for nearly all Jan. 6 defendants, including violent offenders

Hours after taking office Monday, President Trump signed pardons for almost all the defendants charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, including those who violently ...
CBS News - 12h
President Trump issues pardons for Jan. 6 defendants

Following his inauguration, President Trump issued blanket pardons or commutations for those who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The executive action included those convicted of violent ...
CBS News - 14h
Trump's Jan. 6 pardons include violent offenders

The scale of President Trump's Day 1 pardons for Jan. 6 defendants surprised many since they included those convicted of assaulting police officers and seditious conspiracy. CBS News congressional ...
CBS News - 14h
Trump pardons about 1,500 Jan. 6 defendants

President Trump pledged on the campaign trail to absolve those who were charged for their conduct on Jan. 6, 2021.
CBS News - 14h
Trump pardons Jan. 6 defendants: Will there be political backlash?

Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker joins TODAY to talk about some of President Donald Trump’s first actions as president singing a flurry of executive orders and pardons — and the comparisons ...
NBC News - 15h
Trump pardons thousands of Jan. 6 defendants

President Trump pardoned about 1,500 defendants convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot on Monday night, hours after returning to the Oval Office. CBS News' Major Garrett, Fin Gómez, Lindsey ...
CBS News - 1d