(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) A recent survey revealed that more than half of Republican voters thought protestors who faced arrest at the Jan. 6 Capitol protest deserved to be pardoned.
Of likely Republican voters polled by the Daily Mail/TIPP, 54% said they would support a candidate that opted to forgive the protestors. Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis both claimed they would pardon the protestors if voted into office.
Across the political spectrum, only 34% of respondents believed full pardons for J6 protestors would be appropriate. More than 1,000 Capitol protestors have been charged on various assault, conspiracy, property damage and restricted area offenses. Upwards of half have been convicted.
Former President Trump said he planned to pardon a “large portion” of the convictions if successful in the 2024 election.
“I am inclined to pardon many of them,” he said in a New Hampshire town hall gathering. “I can’t say for every single one, because a couple of them, probably they got out of control.”
DeSantis made similar promises on a conservative talk show, promising to comb through the cases of the J6 protestors, along with pro-life activists and parents arrested at school board meetings.
“We will use the pardon power—and I will do that at the front end,” said DeSantis. The Florida governor also discussed the weaponization of the Department of Justice and FBI to target their political enemies.
The DOJ reported that more than 1,030 people faced charges after the Capitol upheaval—most of them related to remaining in restricted federal grounds. Other charges included assault, resisting or impeding officers and employees. Over 570 of those charged pleaded guilty.
Members of the Oath Keepers received longer sentences for seditious conspiracy, with Steward Rhodes, the founder of the group, receiving a sentence of 18 years in prison.
