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full screen More than 1,500 people have been charged with federal crimes following the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Photo: Jose Luis Magana/AP/TT
US Vice President-elect JD Vance believes “of course” that violent people who stormed the Capitol should not be pardoned, he says in an interview with Fox News.
Vance says the issue is very simple – those who “peacefully protested” on January 6, 2021 should be pardoned while those who committed violent acts “obviously” should not be pardoned. The Republican also said that in some cases there is a “small gray area”.
President-elect Donald Trump told NBC last December that he will pardon many of those involved in the storming as soon as he takes office. However, he added that there may be some exceptions that he needs to look into.
More than 1,500 people have been charged with crimes after the storming, in which more than 100 police officers were injured and lawmakers had to hide from the crowds that entered the building as Congress was set to confirm Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.
After Vance’s statement on Fox News on Sunday, he went on X and responded to critics who believe he did not go far enough to exonerate all those convicted.
“I assure you that we care about people who are unjustly locked up. Yes, that includes people who were provoked and that includes people who got a shoddy trial,” he writes.