President Trump pardoned nearly all January 6 defendants on Monday, fulfilling a long-standing campaign promise just hours into his second term.
He briefly stated Monday night that he had granted approximately 1,500 “full, complete, and unconditional pardons” to rioters charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. There have been a total of 1,583 defendants charged.
“What they’ve done to these people is outrageous,” Trump said as he signed several orders from the Oval Office.
The pardons pave the way for hundreds of his supporters to be released from prison in the coming days, including some who were sentenced to years in prison for violently attacking law enforcement that day.
They came just hours after former President Biden issued preemptive pardons for members and staff of the House select committee that investigated the riot on January 6.
Trump also commuted the sentences of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers members accused of plotting to disrupt the peaceful transition of power in 2020 to time served. Former Proud Boys national chair Enrique Tarrio, who is serving a 22-year prison sentence, the longest ever imposed in connection with the attack, received a pardon.
An attorney for Tarrio told The Hill that he is being “processed out” of prison, implying that his release is imminent.
Stewart Rhodes, the Oath Keepers’ founder who is serving an 18-year prison term, is among those whose sentences have been commuted to time served.
On January 6, approximately 600 defendants were accused of assaulting, resisting, or impeding police. Ten defendants were convicted of sedition, the culmination of the Justice Department’s extensive prosecution.
Trump also directed his Justice Department to take steps to dismiss all pending indictments against Jan. 6 defendants whose cases have not yet been fully adjudicated, a decision that would close approximately 470 ongoing cases.
Trump has long promised to pardon those who descended on Capitol Hill as Congress certified his Democratic opponent, former President Biden’s, 2020 election victory, referring to them on the campaign trail as “political prisoners” and “hostages.”
However, comments made by Trump’s allies in recent weeks have suggested that his clemency may not be as broad.
Vice President Vance stated earlier this month that people who “committed violence” on January 6 should “obviously” not be pardoned, while Pam Bondi, Trump’s nominee for attorney general, stated during her confirmation hearing that she “condemns” any violence against law enforcement.
Trump expressed confidence that supporters of the Jan. 6 rioters would appreciate his clemency decisions, referring to them as “hostages” who “for the most part …didn’t do stuff wrong.”
“You’ll be happy because, you know, it’s action, not words that count,” he told me. “And you’re going to see a lot of action on the J6 hostages — a lot.”
