Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., criticized the president Donald Trump Monday night to pardon more than 1,000 people who participated in the riots on January 6, 2021.
Trump signed a pardon for about 1,500 defendants accused of committing crimes resulting from the attack on the US Capitol building, fulfilling the promise he made in December to act quickly and pardon them.
Trump also commuted the sentences of six people on Monday, including leaders of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys extremist groups.
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President Donald Trump has signed a pardon for about 1,500 defendants charged with crimes stemming from the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
But Pelosi called the move “shameful” and said she remembered the “bravery” of law enforcement “heroes” who “ensured the survival of democracy.”
“The President’s actions are an outrageous affront to our judicial system and the heroes who have suffered physical scars and emotional trauma while protecting the Capitol, Congress, and the Constitution,” Pelosi, who did not attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday, said in a statement. Published to X.
“It is shameful that the president has decided to make it his highest priority to abandon and betray police officers who put their lives on the line to stop an attempt to subvert the peaceful transfer of power,” Pelosi said.
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US President Donald Trump sings a second executive order during the inaugural show inside Capital One Arena on the day of his second presidential inauguration, in Washington, US, January 20, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
The Department of Justice reported that approximately 140 police officers were assaulted during the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. This included law enforcement personnel from the U.S. Capitol Police and approximately 60 from the Metropolitan Police Department.
President Donald Trump announced at his inaugural parade at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., that he would pardon so-called “hostages.” (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
Trump announced earlier Monday, during his inaugural parade at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., that he would pardon the so-called “hostages.”
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“Tonight I will sign an amnesty for the J6 hostages to get them out,” Trump said at the show at Capital One Arena. “I'm going to go to the Oval Office and we're going to sign pardons for a lot of people.
So far, judges or juries have, after trial, convicted nearly 250 people who have faced charges for involvement in the riots, and more than 1,000 people have pleaded guilty to crimes as of January.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
