WASHINGTON, DC – The Hill reports a survey released Tuesday by Reuter/Ipsos reveals that nearly six in 10 Americans oppose President Trump pardoning individuals convicted in the January 6 Capitol riots in 2021..
According to the Reuer/Ipsos poll, “58 percent of Americans are not in favor of the president pardoning all of the people who were convicted” stated The Hill.
Trump has already granted around 1,500 “full, complete, and unconditional pardons,” for rioters convicted on charges related to the January 6 attacks, according to The Hill.
These statistics are staggering, as The Hill also noted that 1,583 individuals have been charged so far, with nearly a third of them being accused of “resisting, impeding, or assaulting police officers during the attack.”
Trump’s mass pardons have already received criticism from Democrats and Republican lawmakers, according to the Hill, but Trump has shrugged off criticism, comparing his actions to last-minute pardons former President Biden issued for family members.
He went even further in justifying his actions to the public, quoted by the Hill stating, “These people have already served years in prison … It’s horrible. It’s been inhumane,” when speaking regarding the rioters, adding, “Murders today are not even charged.”
According to ABC News, sentences for 14 individuals were commuted and a “full, complete and unconditional pardon” was offered to “all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.”
ABC News quoted Trump as saying “So, this is January 6th. These are the hostages, approximately 1,500 for a pardon.”
The 14 sentences that were commuted by Trump are, according to ABC News, for those convicted or charged with “engaging in the separate seditious conspiracies mounted by leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers to thwart the lawful transfer of power on Jan. 6, 2021.” ABC News described these charges as higher profile and more grave than others connected to January 6.
The former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio had been sentenced to 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy, as reported by ABC News. However, following Trump’s executive action, Tarrio’s lawyer told ABC News that he was being processed for release in Louisiana.
According to ABC News, Tarrio had received the longest term of imprisonment out of nearly 1,600 individuals charged in relation to the January 6 attack.
Reporting on the reaction to this decision, ABC News highlighted how crowds of supporters outside the Central Detention Facility in Washington sang the national anthem, with rioters on the phone. Notably, ABC News quoted a person as saying, “Thank you, President Trump! We’re getting out tonight.”
According to ABC News, one of many lawmakers rushed from the House and Senate chambers during the January 6 attack, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, called Trump’s executive order “shameful.”
ABC News quoted Pelosi, who called Trump’s actions “an outrageous insult to our justice system and the heroes who suffered physical scars and emotional trauma as they protected the Capitol, the Congress and the Constitution.”
Recounting how Craig Sicknick’s brother Brian Sicknick died after being attacked by rioters, ABC News reported Craig Sicknick’s words calling the pardons a “betrayal of decency.”
In the ABC News article, Sicknick stated, “The man doesn’t understand pain or suffering of others. He can’t comprehend anyone else’s feelings.” Further, ABC News quoted Sicknick as saying “we now have no rule of law.”
According to ABC News, Brian Sicknick suffered two strokes after the riot and died of natural causes, but in the words of a D.C. medical examiner, “all that transpired on that day played a role in his condition.”
As maintained by ABC News, Trump is expected to dismiss all pending indictments that are against the January 6 defendants who have not had their cases disputed. According to recent studies by the District of Columbia U.S. Attorney’s Office, about 470 ongoing cases are expected to be dismissed.
Many DOJ officials have expressed their concern over Trump’s series of pardons as it exhibits his willingness to free violent offenders. Officials argue that not only would this have a detrimental impact on the American legal justice system, but it would also compromise the safety of the American people—prosecutors, judges, and witnesses who are involved in these criminal cases, according to ABC News.
After his loss in the 2020 election, a violent horde of pro-Trump protestors stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, attempting to overturn the election. The mob of supporters fought against U.S. officers, broke into Capitol offices, and destroyed property, maintains ABC News.
ABC states that pro-Trump supporters who were involved in the attack faced legal repercussions for their actions, and that more than 1,580 people were charged in federal court—further, ABC News conveys that more than 1,000 individuals pleaded guilty.
Following the prosecution of these individuals, Trump’s team commissioned a list of potential pardons for the insurrection at the Capitol that they aimed to issue on Day 1 of Trump’s Presidency, as claimed by ABC News.
Of the 1,600 individuals who were charged in federal court for association with the Capitol attack, “608 individuals faced charges for assaulting, resisting, or interfering with law enforcement,” that were attempting to protect the American institution that day, according to ABC News.
The DOJ states that at least 221 individuals were found guilty in the U.S. District Court, and following this ruling another 40 individuals have been convicted.
ABC News also reports the DOJ has also stated that nearly 140 law enforcement officials were injured as a result of this riot.
Following this statement, Joe Biden has issued preemptive pardons to possible targets of Trump’s incoming administration. These targets include lawmakers who made up the House January 6 Committee, according to ABC News.
Trump’s 2024 campaign was made up of his vowed “retribution” on his political enemies, stated ABC News. He identifies lawmakers such as Liz Cheney, who was involved in the investigation of the event that occurred on January 6. Furthermore, ABC News maintains that Trump has stated that individuals who were a part of the House January 6 Committee should be put in jail.
