WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: U.S. President Donald Trump takes part in a signing ceremony after his inauguration on January 20, 2025 in the President's Room at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th President of the United States. (Photo by Melina Mara-Pool/Getty Images)
Photo by Melina Mara-Pool/Getty Images

‘This is a rotten message from a President’: Trump destroyed by the Wall Street Journal over allegedly supporting political violence

President Donald Trump has decided to pardon Jan. 6, 2021, rioters that stormed the Capitol Building. These people were convicted for rallying in Trump’s name in an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

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On his first day in office, Trump commuted the sentences of convicted seditionists who participated in the Capitol Attack. These people received a full and unconditional pardon despite beating and injuring law enforcement. They’ve also interrupted the peaceful transfer of power to former President Joe Biden in 2020. The Editorial Board of The Wall Street Journal condemned Trump’s decision. They wrote, “This is a rotten message from a President about political violence done on his behalf, and it’s a bait and switch.”

The Editorial Board continued, “What happened that day is a stain on Mr. Trump’s legacy. By setting free the cop beaters, the President adds another.” The Wall Street Journal noted that when Trump was asked about the insurrectionists sometime in November 2024, he was conservative with his answers. He claimed that he’d go on a case-by-case basis. Basically, not everyone who participated in the infamous event will be freed.

No gray area found

A week before Trump was sworn in, Vice President JD Vance sang the same tune. He was asked by Fox News where the line for pardon would be drawn. Vance responded, “If you protested peacefully on January the 6th and you’ve had Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice treat you like a gang member, then you should be pardoned. If you committed violence on that day, obviously, you shouldn’t be pardoned.” Vance did defend that there was a “gray area.”

Nevertheless, Kelly Meggs and Stewart Rhodes—two of the people Trump chose to pardon—were convicted for plotting to forcefully oppose the transfer of power. They also conspired with other groups who were willing to use force and transport firearms to Washington, DC. Clearly, the ‘gray area’ Vance spoke of doesn’t exist. Trump’s consideration of violence is also out of the question. This was, of course, to be expected.


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