Trump pardons all suspects in January 6th US Capitol attack

The US president has ended years of efforts to punish those responsible for trying to overturn the 2020 election.

In one of his first official actions in the Oval Office, United States President Donald Trump has pardoned everyone charged with the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

In a major reversal of a years-long campaign to punish those responsible for trying to overturn the results of the 2020 US election, Trump on Monday pardoned nearly 1,500 of his supporters and commuted the sentences of 14 others.

“This proclamation ends a grave national injustice that has been done to the American people over the past four years and begins a process of national reconciliation,” Trump said in an announcement posted on the White House website.

Trump’s pardons on January 6 cleared the slate for many of the most serious criminals, including former far-right Proud Boys leader Enrique Terrio, who was sentenced to 22 years in prison for conspiracy to commit insurrection.

The pardons also erased the criminal records of more than 700 people convicted of corruption offenses, such as trespassing, and halted hundreds of pending cases.

Among the high-profile figures to commute the sentence of far-right Oathkeepers leader Stuart Rhodes, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison for conspiracy to commit insurrection, obstruction of justice, and tampering with documents and proceedings.

Asked whether those who attack police should be punished, Trump said they have been in prison for a long time.

“I see murderers in this country getting two years, one year, maybe not time. So they’ve already been in prison for a long time. These people are devastated,” Trump said, calling their behavior “outrageous.”

While Trump promised to pardon many of the defendants of the Jan. 6 attacks during his reelection campaign, it was unclear how far he would go to pardon those who participated in the attack.

In an interview with Fox News last week, Vice President J.D. Vance said that only those who protested “peacefully” on Jan. 6 should be pardoned.

“If you committed violence that day, obviously you shouldn’t be pardoned,” Vance said. “And there’s a little bit of a gray area there.”

Trump’s leniency was quickly condemned by Democrats and other critics of the president.

“The president’s actions are a blatant affront to our justice system and to the heroes who have suffered physical injuries and emotional trauma while protecting the Capitol, Congress, and the Constitution,” former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a post on X.

“It is shameful that the president has chosen to abandon and betray one of his top priorities, the police officers who gave their lives to prevent an attempt to prevent a peaceful transition of power.”

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