Trump says he would look ‘very, very seriously’ at pardons for Jan 6 defendants if reelected

The HIll ^ | 06/17/22 | CAROLINE VAKIL

[American Number 181269513]

Former President Trump said on Friday that he would look “very, very seriously” at pardoning those charged in connection with storming the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, if he ran for and became president again.

Speaking during a Faith and Freedom event in Nashville, Tenn., Trump said the defendants charged in the Capitol riot were “having their lives totally destroyed and being treated worse than terrorists and murderers,” claiming that most had been “charged with parading through the Capitol.”

“And if I become president, someday if I decide to do it, I will be looking at them very, very seriously for pardons. Very, very seriously,” he added.

Trump has not yet announced whether he will run for president again in 2024, though he has at times teased the possibility that he will.

The former president has previously said that if he ran for president again and won, he would “treat those people from Jan. 6 fairly,” including potentially giving pardons to defendants charged in the riot.

One of his close allies, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), signaled after Trump made those earlier comments that he thought the idea of offering pardons to Capitol riot defendants was “inappropriate,” leading the former president to call the South Carolina Republican a “RINO,” or “Republican in name only.”

The former president’s Friday remarks come amid a slate of public hearings this month from the the House select committee investigating the Capitol riot.

During its latest hearing on Thursday, the panel showed evidence that conservative lawyer John Eastman, who advised Trump on a plan to overturn the 2020 presidential election, sought a pardon from the White House following the Jan. 6 attack.

[American Number 181269513]

One of his close allies, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), signaled after Trump made those earlier comments that he thought the idea of offering pardons to Capitol riot defendants was “inappropriate,” leading the former president to call the South Carolina Republican a “RINO,” or “Republican in name only.”

Trump knows how to play the game. F Off Linda.

[DoughtyOne]

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...this is a general all-purpose message, and should not be seen as targeting any individual I am responding to...

Just $17.00 dollars to 79%.

[TexasFreeper2009]

99% of them will have already served time by then.

He should of pardoned them and everyone in his administration before leaving office.

Completely dropped the ball on that one.

[GMMC0987]

How many will still be in solitary?

[dsrtsage]

He can’t do that, it will anger democrats and the news channels will say bad things about him

[TexasFreeper2009]

I am guessing all but maybe a small handful will have served their sentence and been released by the next presidential election.

Sure, he could pardon them then still, but they will have already served their time in jail. That would only clear their record.

Republicans should be DEMANDING Biden stop these political prosecutions, NOW!

[bankwalker]

They weren’t picked up until after he left office.

[jz638]

Pretty sure the dems are drafting yet another article of impeachment for this interview.

[Guenevere]

Most of this happened AFTER he left office!!!!

[BenLurkin]

The people who are abusing the defendants need to be prosecuted for abuse of power.

[eeriegeno]

I support DJT 100% on this. I would also support him 100% if he would lock up the jailers of the J6 protestors. They are the ones who perpetrated an insurrection...

[markomalley]

He could’ve done that any time before 1/20/2021@11:59AM. He should’ve done that by that time.

Set up a website that said if you were at the Capitol protest, please provide your information. Autopen the signatures on the pardon. Make them specific enough to cover those events only and not allow general criminals to get pardoned (e.g., Antifa capital rioters in 2020-2021).

That entire 1/6/21 mess was an obvious setup by the deep state to do a wide dragnet for Trump supporters. He could’ve and should’ve taken care of his people while he still had the power to do so.

[BobL]

He now lays down the gauntlet for DeSantis. Will be interesting...

[CJ Wolf]

Biden should take a good look at this malarkey and fire two shot gun blast in the air and end this sham. By building back better through pardons. How many were arrested for setting the church on fire and trying to storm the Whitehouse several months earlier?

[McGruff]

That’s the guy I voted for.

[PCPOET7]

if trump had pardoned anyone from the Jan 6th incident before leaving office...impeachment and Nancy Pelosi little hearing would have gotten traction in the public...trumps hands were tied politicly

[Izzatso]

99% of them will have already served time by then.

---

I get the sense his comments are aimed more at those awaiting or anticipating trial.

[DoughtyOne]

It will be of interest to me. I like DeSantis. I think he
is probably flattered by the interest in him, but I think
he’s a solid guy, and will stick with re-election in Florida,
if Trump does run.

If he doesn’t want to run now, he should just defer on this.

There’s no need for him to declare when it won’t win him
more support anyone, if he truly isn’t running.

We’ll see how it plays out.

I think it will wind up Pence against Trump, and Pence is
going to find out early on, there’s just no there there.

[KC Burke]

To follow through on your Pence vs Trump thoughts, I think this is why Rino and establishment Republicans will sit silent as Trump is indicted by the Democrat machine DOJ.

They want him to appear as “damaged goods.” There are many voters willing to pull the Presidential “R” lever for other than Trump. To them, Trump has too much negative baggage.

[DoughtyOne]

Honestly, there’s no up side to reporting how strong Trump’s
support is. It’s the reverse that the media find so
compelling.

His backed people won something in the neighborhood of 115
to 122 so far.

The big story in the media was the six or seven that won
against a trump pick.

That’s sort of what we’re seeing overall > IMO.

I have never seen Trump as a negative. His Twitter
comments were hilarious. They couldn’t control him, and
he told it like he saw it.

They didn’t like it, because he fought back. And when he
did he didn’t take any prisoners.

Man I appreciated that.

Others don’t see it that way.

Look, everything Trump predicted has come true.

People know it.

This election season will be entertaining, and the 2024
will be also.

Take care.