Vice President-elect JD Vance clarified President-elect Donald Trump’s plan for pardoning some of the individuals who were prosecuted for their activities at the U.S. Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
During an interview on Fox News, Vance indicated that the incoming administration would pardon those who were not involved in violence on that day. However, those who assaulted police officers or damaged property might not be receiving a pardon.
When asked about the matter, Vance replied, “Look, if you protested peacefully on January 6 and you’ve had Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice treat you like a gang member, you should be pardoned. If you committed violence on that day, obviously, you shouldn’t be pardoned.”
Vance continued: “There's a little bit of a gray area there, but we're very much committed to seeing the equal administration of law. There are a lot of people, we think, in the wake of January the sixth who were prosecuted unfairly. We need to rectify that.”
JD Vance on J6 pardons (notice he said there is a grey area between those who committed violence and those who didn’t…there will be more to come on that I am sure): pic.twitter.com/RUFNczqkpD
— Insurrection Barbie (@DefiyantlyFree) January 12, 2025
Democrats and leftist media have been using the riot as a political weapon against Trump and his reporters, falsely accusing the president-elect of inciting the violence at the Capitol. They painted those arrested for being present at the building as “insurrectionists” despite hours of video footage showing that most of them did not engage in violence.
Democrats also tried unsuccessfully to influence the outcome of the presidential election by suing to remove Trump’s name from the ballot under a provision in the 14th Amendment that bars those involved in a rebellion against the government from holding office.
A recent CNN poll showed that only 37 percent of Americans blame Trump for the riot, a significant drop from 2021, when 48 percent believed he was responsible.
Trump repeatedly promised to begin pardoning the J6ers during his first hour in office. So far, the Justice Department has charged about 1,580 people for federal crimes related to the incident, according to The Washington Post. At least 379 people were charged for assaulting police or journalists. About 287 were charged for less severe violent or nonviolent offenses, including property destruction, theft, obstruction, or gun-related offenses.
Nevertheless, it’s clear that most, if not all, of these prosecutions were politically motivated as Democrats sought to cast the riot as a momentous event comparable to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, chattel slavery, or even World War II.
Folks on the left have already been complaining about the possibility that Trump would pardon any of those caught up in these political prosecutions. There will likely be an even bigger meltdown when Trump finally issues the pardons.