{"id":1037897,"date":"2024-07-31T18:14:36","date_gmt":"2024-07-31T22:14:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1037897"},"modified":"2024-07-31T18:14:52","modified_gmt":"2024-07-31T22:14:52","slug":"watch-donald-trump-would-absolutely-pardon-violent-january-6-insurrectionists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/watch-donald-trump-would-absolutely-pardon-violent-january-6-insurrectionists\/","title":{"rendered":"WATCH: Donald Trump Would \u201cAbsolutely\u201d Pardon Violent January 6 Insurrectionists"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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In response to Donald Trump <\/em>doubling down<\/em><\/a> on his pledges to pardon January 6 insurrectionists, <\/em>DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday Donald Trump doubled down on his pledge to put violent criminals over law enforcement, confirming he would ‘absolutely\u2019 pardon insurrectionists he rallied to storm the Capitol and attack officers after he lost the 2020 election by over seven million votes. Trump puts his own campaign of revenge and retribution above law and order at every turn, and if given the chance, Trump and his MAGA running mate JD Vance will undermine our democracy and replace the rule of law with the rule of Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WATCH: Donald Trump said he would \u201cabsolutely\u201d pardon violent January 6 insurrectionists.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel Scott, ABC News<\/a>: \u201c140 police officers were assaulted [on January 6].<\/strong> Their injuries included broken bones, at least one officer lost an eye, one had two cracked ribs, two smashed spinal discs, another had a stroke. Were the people who assaulted those 140 officers, including those I just mentioned, \u2018patriots\u2019 who deserve pardons?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

[Trump refuses to answer]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scott: \u201cBut sir, my question is on those rioters who assaulted officers. Would you pardon those people?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donald Trump: \u201cOh absolutely I would. <\/strong>If they\u2019re innocent, I would pardon them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scott: \u201cThey\u2019ve been convicted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump continues to praise and promise pardons for January 6 rioters, who he calls \u201chostages\u201d and \u201cpatriots\u201d…<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hill<\/a>: \u201cTrump describes imprisoned Jan. 6 rioters as \u2018hostages\u2019\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cTrump vows pardons, government apology to Capitol rioters if elected\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

TIME<\/a>: \u201cTrump has sought to recast the insurrectionist riot as an act of patriotism. \u2018I call them the J-6 patriots,\u2019 Trump tells TIME. When asked whether he would consider pardoning every one of them, he says: \u2018Yes, absolutely.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NBC News<\/a>: \u201cFormer President Donald Trump promised Wednesday night that if he is elected he will pardon a \u2018large portion\u2019 of the people convicted of federal offenses for their participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump<\/a>: \u201cJanuary 6, it was the largest crowd I\u2019ve ever spoken to. And they were there proud, they were there with love in their heart. That was an unbelievable \u2014 and it was a beautiful day.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026while his running mate JD Vance downplays the violence on January 6.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hill<\/a>: \u201cJD Vance says he is \u2018skeptical\u2019 Pence\u2019s life was in danger on Jan. 6\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Politico<\/a>: \u201c[Vance] downplayed the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol<\/strong>, when Pence was forced to evacuate the building as rioters called for his hanging.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump, who is vowing to be a dictator on \u201cday one,\u201d told voters they \u201cwon\u2019t have to vote anymore\u201d if he\u2019s elected president. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Atlantic<\/a>: \u201cTrump Says He\u2019ll Be a Dictator on \u2018Day One\u2019\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump<\/a>: \u201cYou won\u2019t have to do it anymore. Four more years, you know what \u2013 it will be fixed, it will be fine. You won\u2019t have to vote anymore.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vance has no problem with the idea of Trump using the government to go after his political opponents \u2014 even as Trump echoes dictators and warns of a \u201cbloodbath\u201d if he loses in November.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN<\/a>: \u201cMany people have lost American presidential elections over the last 230 years – Trump is the only one to say about violence if he loses \u2018it depends.\u2019\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NBC News<\/a>: \u201cTrump says there will be a \u2018bloodbath\u2019 if he loses the election\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kristen Welker, NBC<\/a>: \u201cSenator, if former President Trump were to win, if you were to be his vice president, would you support him appointing a special prosecutor to go after his political enemies, the Bidens?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vance: \u201cDonald Trump is talking about appointing a special prosecutor to investigate Joe Biden for wrongdoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think what Donald Trump is simply saying is we ought to investigate the prior administration.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Associated Press<\/a>: \u201cTrump declines to rule out abusing power to seek retribution if he returns to the White House\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cTrump calls political enemies \u2018vermin,\u2019 echoing dictators Hitler, Mussolini\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Guardian<\/a>: \u201cDonald Trump says he will lock up his political enemies if he is president again.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump is still pushing lies about his loss by over 7 million votes in the 2020 election. Vance is right there with him, even refusing to commit to accepting this November\u2019s results.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Associated Press<\/a>: \u201c[Trump] is flooding the airwaves and his social media platform with distortions, misinformation and unfounded conspiracy theories about his defeat.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NBC News<\/a>: \u201cRe-litigating the 2020 election, repeating false claims it was stolen and casting aspersions on the security of mail voting remain major fixtures for [Trump] on the stump.<\/strong> \u2026 He regularly refers to the 2020 election as \u2018rigged\u2019 on his social media channels.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HuffPost<\/a>: \u201c[Vance] said he would accept a Biden win only if he considered the election to be legitimate. \u2026 Vance\u2019s comments illustrate a new tactic by Republican lawmakers, who are now placing conditions on accepting election results.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

New York Times<\/a>: \u201cJ.D. Vance Says He Would Accept the Election Results, With a Caveat\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vance<\/a>: \u201cI think the entire post-2020 thing would have gone a lot better if there had actually been an effort to provide alternative slates of electors<\/strong>, and to force us to have that debate. I think it would\u2019ve been a much better thing for the country. \u2026 [Trump] was trying to take a constitutional process to its natural conclusion.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think it would\u2019ve been extraordinarily disappointing to a whole host of people that I care a lot about if Trump had just taken it [and conceded the 2020 election before January 6].\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vance<\/a>: \u201cNo real Republican with any credibility in the party is still blaming [Trump for January 6].\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ABC News<\/a>: \u201cJD Vance says [he] wouldn\u2019t have certified 2020 race until states submitted pro-Trump electors\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

New York Times<\/a>: \u201c[Vance] has said that, unlike Vice President Mike Pence in 2020, he would have helped Mr. Trump overturn the results<\/strong>, by accepting Trump electors that had not been elected by voters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vance praised Project 2025 \u2013 which is \u201cundeniably a Trump-driven operation\u201d \u2013 as containing \u201cgood ideas,\u201d and has cozied up to Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Axios<\/a>: \u201cThis is undeniably a Trump-driven operation.<\/strong> The biggest tell: Johnny McEntee \u2014 one of Trump’s closest White House aides, and his most fervent internal loyalty enforcer \u2014 is a senior adviser to Project 2025. One of the most powerful architects is Stephen Miller, a top West Wing adviser for the Trump administration.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vance<\/a>: \u201cI\u2019ve reviewed a lot of [Project 2025]. There are some good ideas in there.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

New Republic<\/a>: \u201cProject 2025 Leader Is Overjoyed by Trump\u2019s Vice Presidential Pick\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nick Corasaniti, New York Times<\/a>: \u201c[Kevin Roberts] reacted to the news [of Vance\u2019s VP selection] \u2018with a broad smile on my face\u2019 and said that \u2018privately, we were really rooting for him.\u2019\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gram Slattery, Reuters<\/a>: \u201cVance is very close to Heritage and even wrote the forward for a book from the think tank\u2019s president. Project 2025 is of course organized by Heritage.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In response to Donald Trump doubling down on his pledges to pardon January 6 insurrectionists, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement:  \u201cToday Donald Trump doubled down on his pledge to put violent criminals over law enforcement, confirming he would ‘absolutely\u2019 pardon insurrectionists he rallied to storm the Capitol and attack officers […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":263,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1037897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWATCH: Donald Trump Would \u201cAbsolutely\u201d Pardon Violent January 6 Insurrectionists - Democrats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/watch-donald-trump-would-absolutely-pardon-violent-january-6-insurrectionists\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democrats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-07-31T22:14:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-07-31T22:14:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/War-Room-Master-Image.png?w=1024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Claire DePree\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Claire DePree\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/watch-donald-trump-would-absolutely-pardon-violent-january-6-insurrectionists\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/watch-donald-trump-would-absolutely-pardon-violent-january-6-insurrectionists\/\",\"name\":\"WATCH: Donald Trump Would \u201cAbsolutely\u201d Pardon Violent January 6 Insurrectionists - 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