Donald Trump confirmed his plans to pardon supporters who were involved in the attack on the US Capitol on Jan 6, 2021, during a Sunday interview on Meet the Press.
In what were his most definitive comments on potential legal relief for the pro-Trump rioters, the president-elect told host Kristen Welker that pardoning the insurrectionists was at the top of his to-do list when he steps into office for his second term.
“I’m going to be acting very quickly. ... First day,” Trump said. “They’ve been in there for years, and they’re in a filthy, disgusting place that shouldn’t even be allowed to be open.”
The incoming Republican did leave room for “some exceptions” to his sweeping legal plans, claiming he wouldn’t issue pardons “if somebody was radical, crazy.”
Following the violent Jan 6 Capitol attack, more than 1,500 people were charged for crimes ranging from unlawful parading to seditious conspiracy. Over 1,250 have since been convicted or pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the insurrection.
During his interview on Meet the Press, Trump left the door open to issuing pardons for people who already pleaded guilty to charges, telling Welker they did so “because they had no choice.”
Trump, whose own indictment for alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election was dismissed last month, added, “I know the system. The system’s a very corrupt system.”
“They say to a guy, ‘You’re going to go to jail for two years or for 30 years.’ And these guys are looking, their whole lives have been destroyed,” he continued. “For two years, they’ve been destroyed. But the system is a very nasty system.”