President-elect Donald Trump told NBC’s Kristen Welker on Sunday that he wanted to pardon the Jan. 6 rioters on the first day of his administration and said people on the Jan. 6 committee in Congress belonged in jail.
“I’m going to look at everything. We will look at individual cases,” Trump told Welker. “But I’m going to act very quickly.”
Trump said during his campaign that he planned to pardon the January 6 rioters. Welker followed up and asked how quickly he planned to act on it.
“The first day, I watch the first day. These people have been there – how long has it been? Three, four years,” Trump said. ‘They’ve been there for years. And they’re in a filthy, disgusting place that shouldn’t even be open.”
Donald Trump said he planned to pardon the January 6 protesters on day one. (Screenshot/NBC)
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Welker also asked whether President Biden was considering an issue preventive pardon to some of Trump’s opponents, such as Liz Cheney or newly elected Senator Adam Schiff. White House lawyer Ed Siskel is arranging talks about the possible pardon with several other senior Biden aides, including Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, Politico reported, citing senior Democrats familiar with the conversations.
“For what they did, quite frankly, they should go to jail,” Trump told Welker.
Welker asked whether he would direct his FBI director to send anyone on the Jan. 6 committee, such as former Sen. Liz Cheney, to prison.
“No, not at all. I think they should look at that, but I’m not going to do that – I’m going to focus on drilling, baby, drilling,” Trump responded.
President-elect Donald Trump takes the stage during a campaign rally at the Desert Diamond Arena on August 23, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
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The editorial staff of the New York Times warned that President Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter Biden, would provide cover for Trump to pardon the Capitol rioters on January 6.
“It is easy to imagine that the ‘they did it too’ defense would be offered if Mr. Trump were to pardon the perpetrators of the January 6 violent attack on the Capitol, as he has suggested. Hunter Biden’s crimes are not nearly equivalent to Hunter Biden’s crimes. destruction caused by the rioters, but his father’s action confuses defenses against future abuses.”
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Biden announced last week that he forgave his son of all crimes against the US that he “committed or may have committed” between January 1, 2014 and December 1, 2024.
In his statement, Biden also accused the Justice Department of “unfairly” targeting his son. He wrote: “From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I watched my son be selectively and unfairly prosecuted. “
Fox News’ Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
