First Day of the Capitol Riot: President Donald Trump and the DOJ’s Corrupt Case on Capitol Hill Propagation and the 2020 Reionization
Trump issued 14 sentence commutations and issued blanket pardons for all other individuals convicted in relation to the Capitol riot. 1,580 individuals were charged for crimes on January 6.
As a first-day act, it was a stunningly symbolic one. Four years ago, on January 6, 2021, thousands of Trump’s supporters galvanized by conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, came to DC and besieged the Capitol with the goal of preventing the peaceful transfer of power. The ugly scenes culminated in the deaths of five people, left more than 140 police officers injured, and Trump left Washington in disgrace.
On the campaign trail, Trump regularly featured the stories of Jan. 6 defendants he labeled “hostages” and “patriots.” A version of the anthem sung by a choir of inmates was played by speakers at the Trump rallies.
The DOJ had requested harsher punishments in hundreds of cases, but the federal judges in Washington imposed lighter punishments than the DOJ had requested. But they also pushed back hard in their courtrooms against efforts to rewrite the history of that day, amid claims from Trump and his allies that the rioters had been unfairly targeted for prosecution.
When the attack on the Capitol happened, former Attorney General Merrick Garland told NPR that all FBI offices and U.S. attorney’s offices were working on it. Thousands of subpoenas were issued, thousands of electronic devices and terabytes of data were examined, and hundreds of hours of videos were examined.
But the Justice Department’s case against Trump, for allegedly conspiring to cling to power and deprive millions of Americans of the right to have their votes count in 2020, ended with a whimper.
Jack Smith, the special counsel, was forced to drop the case because the DOJ believed a sitting president cannot be charged or tried.
Biden pardons Fauci, Milley and members of Jan. 6 panel: “It’s a tragedy to save lives” — A legacy for the incoming Trump administration
In an extraordinary move hours before leaving office on Monday, President Biden said he was issuing pardons to retired Gen. Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the members of Congress and staff who served on the Jan. 6 committee and the U.S. Capitol and Washington, D.C., police officers who testified before that committee.
Biden said the preemptive pardons were needed because of threats of “unjustified and politically motivated prosecutions” by the incoming administration.
It is not clear that the incoming Trump administration intends to prosecute the individuals. At her confirmation hearing last week, Pam Bondi stated that there wouldn’t be political prosecutions on her watch. Many Trump’s opponents should be investigated or prosecuted, says Trump’s nominee for FBI director.
Fauci was a leading figure leading the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic. An infectious disease specialist at the National Institutes of Health, he encouraged people to wear masks and social distance, but Trump allies accuse him of covering up the alleged real causes of COVID. Trump called Fauci a “disaster” and Fauci has been investigated by congressional Republicans.
Fauci said that he has been motivated by a single goal throughout his career, that is to improve the health and lives of humankind.
A dedicated and accomplished physician/scientist and public health official like Fauci who saved millions of lives with the help of many teams of skilled and distinguished colleagues, is what my legacy will be.
Source: Biden pardons Fauci, Milley and members of Jan. 6 panel
A Fox News Analysis of the Dec. 16, 2016 Insurrection by a Trump ‘Fascist to the Core’
Milley was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during Trump’s first term and later called Trump “fascist to the core” in a book by journalist Bob Woodward. Trump said he should be executed.
Biden said the members of the January 6 committee, along with law enforcement officials who testified before it, were doing their job to illuminate the planned insurrection by a mob of Trump supporters.
Staffers for the House select Jan. 6 committee were “surprised” by the news of the pardon. A congressional aide said they were sorting whether they needed to accept the pardon or how the process worked. There was confusion because the announcement didn’t include names or details of the pardon. The aide, who was not authorized to speak on the record, said staffers were relieved that the news was true in case they were targeted by the Trump administration.
In the end, it seems that the panel’s report was the final one. Dozens of staffers will be covered by pardons. The panel’s final report included a list of more than 50. It was not known if the pardons covered consultants and contractors.
The ex-chairman of the Proud Boys, and the leader of the Oath Keepers, were given commutations after his order included a pardon.
Even though murderers who aren’t charged all over are pardoned, Trump argued that his supporters were sent to prison even though they weren’t charged.
Murderers don’t have time. You look at some of the district attorneys. They go after political opponents, but they don’t shoot people in the street.
“I can’t get there for people who have been convicted of assault upon a police officer,” said Tillis. I think it was a bad idea.
I do not support pardons for people who engage in violence on January 6 and break windows, for example.
Meanwhile, Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski said she was “disappointed” by the decision, adding, “I do fear the message that is sent to these brave men and women that stood by us.”
Proud Boys Leaders to Walk Free After Trump Releases All January 6 Rioters: The Unusual Case of J.B. Duarte
More than 25,000 national guard troops stood watch as Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the U.S.
Before Trump had even put ink to paper, news that correctional facilities were beginning to process January 6-ers for release had started percolating online. Social media accounts linked to the Proud Boys were jubilant, and Gavin McInnes, who founded the Proud Boys in 2016, declared “Party for the Boys” on a livestream of his show while collecting donations to support released members of the gang.
Duarte told WIRED that he was anticipating the release of Enrique. “The guys are excited and think that justice will finally come to us,” said Duarte. Donald Trump knows what it’s like to be on the side of those who are not following the law.
“These people have been destroyed, what they’ve done to these people is outrageous, there’s rarely been anything like it in the history of this country,” Trump said of the January 6-ers from the Oval Office. He also floated conspiracy theories that “outside agitators” and the FBI were somehow responsible for the violence that unfolded on January 6. Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who was also convicted of seditious conspiracy, also had his sentence commuted and will walk free.
Enrique Tarrio, leader of the far-right gang, was sentenced to 22-years behind bars by the New President Donald Trump
Tarrio’s mother Zuny Duarte told WIRED that Enrique will be back in Miami by 3 pm on Tuesday. He’s been serving his sentence at a federal prison in Pollock, Louisiana.
Four Proud Boy leaders convicted of seditious conspiracy are among the hundreds of Capitol rioters who will walk free following pardons and sentence commutations issued by newly-inaugurated president Donald Trump.
Enrique Tarrio, who was the leader of the far-right gang at the time of the insurrection four years ago, had been sentenced to 22-years behind bars—the longest sentence received by any January 6-er. A pardon was given to him. His co-conspirators were sentenced to at least 15 years in prison, but had their sentences commuted as of Monday.