Trump Grants Pardons for Jan. 6 Capitol Attack

President Trump pardoned nearly all of the 1,500 individuals charged in relation to the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. This decision came shortly after former President Joe Biden granted immunity to family members and potential targets of the new administration.

These pardons fulfill a contentious campaign promise made by Trump, clearing those involved in an event characterized by federal judges and prosecutors as an attack on American democracy.

Upon arriving at the White House, President Biden confirmed the pardons, effectively nullifying four years of prosecutions, which had led to over 1,100 convictions in what the Justice Department labeled the largest investigation in U.S. history.

In addition to the pardons, Trump commuted the sentences of more than a dozen individuals. While in the Oval Office, Trump asserted that those involved were treated unfairly, commenting, “The judges have been absolutely brutal. The prosecutors have been brutal.”

Trump also compared the harsh punishment faced by those linked to the Capitol attack to lighter sentences received by other criminals, stating, “I see murderers from this country get two years, one year, and maybe no time, but they’ve already been in jail for a long time.”

Among those granted clemency were leaders of far-right groups like the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, who were previously convicted of seditious conspiracy and related offenses.

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