Dozens of Pardoned Rioters Charged After January 6
Tuesday, January 13, 2026
A leftist news outlet offers a somewhat misleadingly-titled, but still disturbing update on Trump's blanket pardon of 1600 January 6 rioters. I have already noted here both that the recipients of the pardon:
... ranged from unwitting trespassers (who could reasonably be pardoned) to real criminals (who should have served their terms)...,and that a few of those real criminals had gotten into trouble with the law again after being pardoned.
The update is titled "Five years after January 6, dozens of pardoned insurrectionists have been arrested again," causing me to think that the 33 individuals, counted by a watchdog, had all committed crimes since being pardoned.
That impression is false, as the last line of the below shocking paragraph indicates:
The list eventually became a more formal report, published in December, that identified at least 33 insurrectionists who have been rearrested, charged or sentenced for other crimes since January 6, 2021. The charges range from possession of child pornography to sexual assault, child molestation and aggravated kidnapping. Many incidents occurred before the pardons; only four insurrectionists allegedly reoffended since receiving their pardons.Note also that the update is lumping people charged and found guilty together.
Although I am dubious about calls to abolish the pardon power, I agree that it -- and the Chief Executive's fitness for office -- should be reviewed.
Given who Trump has pardoned -- and not just for January 6 -- there is no need to exaggerate or sensationalize anything: Trump knew, or could have easily known then that he was pardoning serious criminals, he knew with later pardons, and he does it anyway.
The formal report, which is more measured, is worth a look, and mentions that "in one case last month, Trump explicitly re-pardoned one insurrectionist for his unrelated weapons charges." The report lists names, reported charges, sources, and whether the alleged offense occurred after the pardon.
-- CAV
2 comments:
This is consistent with Trump's view of himself--shared by far, far too many Republicans--of himself as king. The issue isn't law, justice, innocence, or guilt; the issue is personal loyalty. The Jan 6 insurrectionists displayed in that action loyalty to Trump, and he is repaying them by protecting them. It's very much in line with the way politics worked in the Middle Ages and feudal Japan--any crime is acceptable except one, disloyalty. The modern twist is that egregious crimes are a benefit to this--the more egregious the violation of social norms, the more one displays loyalty to Trump, and the more one can expect protection and favors (as long as it's convenient for Trump, anyway).
As an aside this also explains why people view Trump as a holy figure. The three roles of kings historically have been 1) chief judge, 2) chief general, and 3) chief priest. The pardon and political attacks Trump engages in are part of the first role, the actions in Venezuela and Greenland are part of the second, and the Trump Bibles and continued treatment of Trump as a saint are an expression of the third. Once you view Trump's supporters as serfs looking for a king, rather than men (in the historical sense of the term) fully participating in the rule of their country in a democratic fashion, the apparent contradictions make sense. That's not to downplay the danger; rather it's something we should be VERY worried about. Attempts to establish dynasties do NOT go well in the world at present, and tend to destroy the country as well as the dynasty. Worse, Trump is merely a symptom. Remove him and the people looking for a master will find someone else to fill the void, likely someone worse.
Well put, with the last line being the worst of news in the long-term.
Ayn Rand's essay, "The Comprachicos," explains why there are so many people looking for a king.
Good news on that front is that disenchantment with government schools can be the first step to fixing that problem, by ultimately opening that industry to competition/meaningful feedback from parents, employers, and others affected by the quality of education.
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