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Jan.6th Pardons - The Gift That Keeps on Giving [1]

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Date: 2025-02-27

I wrote about this last week. Now it seems the Department of Justice is again making Trump's Jan.6th criminals into angels.

Judges don't seem to think it's right. In fact, this judge, still another Trump nominee in these cases, has asked what it all means.

This time it's Dan Wilson, from Kentucky. Three weeks ago, the DOJ didn't think Wilson's pardon for Jan.6th covered his storing illegal weapons at his home. He was caught with six guns and 4,800 rounds of ammunition, and had previous felony convictions that made it illegal for him to posses firearms. He was also caught at the Capitol with a gun.

On Tuesday, the DOJ did an about turn and said they had "received further clarity on the intent of the Presidential pardon," without saying what it was or who provided it.

The problem is the vague language of the pardon which says Trump granted "a full, complete unconditional pardon to all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6th, 2021."

It's the "related to" part that keeps coming up.

U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich questioned DOJ attorney Jennifer Leigh Blackwell about the changing opinion on Wednesday.

The judge said pardons have to "have a fixed meaning. The intent can not evolve over time as new cases are brought to his attention," referring to Trump. She said Trump could just give Wilson a new pardon.

"I don't think you can just have an open pardon. It can't be 'we know it when we see it.'"

Judge Friedrich pointed out that Wilson's case was similar to Jeremy Brown's, who had guns and classified materials that were found in a search "related to" Jan. 6th in Florida. DOJ is arguing that the case should be dropped because of the same logic.

The only major case DOJ is not asking asking to extend this blanket pardon to is Edward Kelley, who created a hit list of FBI agents who had investigated him for Jan.6th. They either have some sense, or they know when they've hit a brick wall.

There were some Republicans who didn't agree with Trump's Jan. 6th pardons:

Sen. Mitch McConnell Sen. Susan Collins Sen.Thom Tillis Rep. Nicole Malliotakis Sen. Lisa Murkowski Sen. Bill Cassidy

Not enough. I'd like to see at least 13 Republican Senators for an impeachment conviction. Only need a handful of Representatives, but there was only one. One!

Dan Wilson's attorney, George Pallas, said the judge did not have the authority to interpret the pardons. He said Blackwell had essentially talked for Trump at the hearing. "She's telling you what the president means by this pardon. It's not subject to interpretation."

This is when things got a little more heated.

Trump lied about not pardoning violent offenders. He said he was going to look at them on a case by case basis. But as he was signing the huge batch of executive orders on January 20th, "Trump just said, 'F*ck it. release 'em all,'" said an advisor familiar with the discussions.

Knowing Trump, he was just too lazy to go through them one by one. 1500 convictions and 450 pending cases. He wouldn't have any time to screw up the government or persecute trans for a while.

The other story is about the 140 law enforcement officers wounded in the melee. The one who died the next day of multiple heart attacks after having been bear-sprayed at the Capitol. The four officers who have campaigned for accountability: Harry Dunn, Michael Fanone, Aquilino Gonell and Daniel Hodges. And the four suicides soon after. Their story should never be forgotten.

The pardons just add to Trump's and Republicans' attempt to rewrite history with Capitol insurrectionists being "peaceful tourists" and Trump labeling it as a "love fest."

We know better.

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