Hundreds of people have been convicted in the storming of the Capitol in 2021, including those who assaulted officers.
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“Oh, absolutely, I would,” former President Donald J. Trump said in response to a question about pardoning those convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. “If they’re innocent, I would pardon them.”
Former President Donald J. Trump said on Wednesday that he would pardon rioters who assaulted police officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, further embracing those who stormed the building as he sought to stay in power despite his election loss.
Mr. Trump was speaking at an event held at the convention of the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago, where he went after Vice President Kamala Harris in an attack that recalled his stoking of the false “birther” conspiracy theory about former President Barack Obama.
In a combative exchange with the ABC News anchor Rachel Scott, one of several interviewers on the panel with the former president, Mr. Trump discussed how he would handle legal cases against the rioters.
“My question is on those rioters who assaulted officers,” Ms. Scott said. “Would you pardon those people?”
“Oh, absolutely, I would,” Mr. Trump replied, without hesitation. “If they’re innocent, I would pardon them.”
Ms. Scott said many rioters were convicted, to which the crowd laughed. Mr. Trump said they had been convicted under a “tough system.”
Mr. Trump also falsely claimed that “nobody died that day.” One member of the mob at the Capitol, Ashli Babbitt, was fatally shot by the police when she tried to climb through the shattered window of a barricaded door. Eight other deaths have since been attributed to the attack.
More than 140 officers suffered injuries that day, many at the hands of rioters who were trying to fight their way into the Capitol. Several officers in the fray called the scene “medieval.” The sweeping criminal investigations that have followed have led to more than a thousand arrests and hundreds of convictions, including for assaulting law enforcement officers.
Mr. Trump, who was convicted this year of 34 felonies in Manhattan and faces more criminal trials, has historically considered himself a friend to the police. At his rallies, he frequently tells supporters to “back the blue” and accuses Democrats of failing to stand with law enforcement officers. Mr. Trump has also said for years that he will consider pardoning the rioters — which he has sometimes referred to as “hostages” and “patriots” — if he wins re-election. He has previously considered a blanket pardon for all those charged.
The Harris campaign has already begun to highlight the tense exchange. An official campaign social media account posted a clip of Mr. Trump’s remarks, which has since been viewed 600,000 times.
“Donald Trump has already proven he cannot unite America, so he attempts to divide us,” said Michael Tyler, a Harris campaign spokesman, in a statement about Mr. Trump’s appearance.
Lynne Patton, a Trump campaign adviser, said in a statement that Mr. Trump had faced “biased and rude treatment from certain hostile members of the media” at the panel.
Simon J. Levien is a Times political reporter covering the 2024 elections and a member of the 2024-25 Times Fellowship class, a program for journalists early in their careers. More about Simon J. Levien
See more on: 2024 Elections, Donald Trump
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Source: nytimes.com
