Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), the former chair of the Jan. 6 Committee, released a statement condemning President Donald J. Trump after he issued pardons for more than 1,500 violent rioters, including leaders of alt-right groups the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.
“With these pardons and grants of clemency, President Trump has started his second term just like he finished his first: with lawless contempt for our justice system and our democracy. Many of these criminals were convicted of violent crimes against law enforcement,” Thompson wrote in a statement released on X.
“All have been found guilty or pleaded guilty of crimes
against the United States—and all tried to stop the peaceful transfer of power on January 6 in servitude to Donald Trump and the Big Lie. To be clear, none were solely protesting or expressing their First Amendment rights. None are victims and none are hostages.”Trump referred to the rioters as “hostages” after he issued approximately 1,500 pardons just hours after he was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on Jan. 20, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
According to CNN, the group includes Julian Khater, who pleaded guilty to assaulting US Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick; Devlyn Thompson, who hit a police officer with a metal baton
; and Robert Palmer from Florida, who attacked officers with a fire extinguisher, a wooden plank, and a pole.He also issued commutations to cover the sentences for 14 far-right extremists who are members of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys. Several were charged or convicted with seditious conspiracy.
Thompson’s statement comes just days after former President Joe Biden issued a pardon for him and other members of the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack.
Biden spared the congressman, along with former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the committee’s vice chair; Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; and retired Gen. Mark Milley.
The names were seemingly listed on a list curated by Trump and his allies of “enemies” who may have crossed him politically or pushed to hold him accountable for attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
In a joint statement, Thompson and his fellow pardoned colleagues thanked Biden as they claim their families “have been continuously targeted not only with harassment” just for “simply for doing our jobs and upholding our oaths of office.”
Cheney and Thompson shared similar sentiments that Trump will never be able to live down the horrific events in 2021 down, regardless of the rioters pardons.
“Donald Trump, his enablers, and all those who broke the law that day will never be able to erase the stain of their dishonor,” Thompson said. “History will remember.”
RELATED CONTENT: DOJ OIG Report Criticizes FBI Response To Jan. 6 Insurrection