DeSantis is not ruling out a pardon for Trump, Jan. 6 rioters
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), now the 2024 presidential candidate, didn’t rule out the possibility of the Jan. 6 rioters and even his current biggest political rival, former President Donald Trump, in an interview with right-wing media on Thursday pardon personality.
Clay Travis, the host of “The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show,” asked DeSantis if any of the people convicted of a federal misdemeanor related to the storming of the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, deserved “their cases.” to have it tried by a Republican.” President.” He also asked DeSantis if he would pardon Trump if he were convicted of felonies in the numerous investigations he faces.
DeSantis didn’t specifically mention Trump or the Jan. 6 defense attorneys in his response, but said he’s open to considering “any instance of deprivation.”
DeSantis said that on the “first day” of his presidency, I’m going to have “people get together and look at all these cases… people.” [who] are victims of gun attacks or political attacks and we will be aggressive in granting pardons.”
The governor signaled he would investigate the behavior of the Black Lives Matter movement and charge protesters who may have committed a crime accordingly. “You will not be prosecuted at all, that is an unequal application of justice,” DeSantis said.
He also accused the left of using the FBI and Justice Department as “weapons” to crack down on conservative parents and anti-abortion people.
“Part of this is due to the FBI tracking parents and attending school board meetings. It’s partly about how they treat a pro-life protester and how they don’t deal with people who attack pro-life protesters,” he said.
The question shows how the Jan. 6 pardons are becoming the litmus test for the 2024 Republican presidency. Unlike DeSantis Trump swore it to pardon “a large proportion” of those convicted of January 6 crimes. Trump has championed the cause of the more than 1,000 people charged with various crimes related to the Capitol storming to prevent confirmation of the 2020 election.
Other 2024 candidates seem less open to pardons. Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley in Iowa last week called January 6 was a “horrible day” and it was said that anyone caught breaking the law “should pay the price.”
Since the end of March more than 500 people have pleaded guilty and more than 400 have been convicted of the January 6 crimes.
DeSantis, a former federal prosecutor, found himself caught up in a conservative media campaign Thursday after announcing his presidential campaign on Twitter Spaces last night.
