JD Vance explains what Trump’s process for ‘correcting’ ‘unjust’ prosecutions could look like from January 6
Focus on President-elect Donald Trump vow of pardon Protesters intensify on January 6, with his return to the White House just eight days away.
Vice President-elect JD Vance — who, like Trump, has been critical of a justice system that is allegedly weaponized against protesters — suggested their crimes could be weighed when considering pardons.
“If you protested peacefully on Jan. 6 and Merrick Garland’s Justice Department treated you like a gang member, you should be pardoned,” Fox News’ Vance Shannon Bream said during an exclusive one-on-one interview that aired Sunday.
“If you committed violence on that day, obviously you shouldn’t be forgiven, and there’s a bit of a gray area there, but we’re very committed to seeing equal application of the law. And there are a lot of people, we think, after January 6 who have been unfairly prosecuted , we have to get it right.”
TRUMP ASKS ABOUT ‘J-6 HOSTAGES’ IN RESPONSE TO BIDEN HUNTER PARDON: ‘SUCH ABUSE’
JD Vance speaks at a press conference on May 13, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah, File)
Trump previously promised to pardon the protesters on Jan. 6, the first day of his new administration, saying NBC’s Kristen Welker last month that the people from the committee for January 6 in Congress belong in prison.
“I’m going to look at everything. We’re going to look at individual cases,” Trump told Welker as he laid out his plans. “But I will act very quickly.”
CALIFORNIA FIRES: IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS FOR LOS ANGELES AREA RESIDENTS AND HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM
The new administration faces a series of challenges ranging from the border crisis to hostages in the Middle East to domestic disaster relief once all members are sworn in.
The relentless wildfires raging through Southern California are one of the issues the Trump administration will have to deal with. With a growing rift between Trump and state Democratic officials, the intended path forward appears unclear.
“President Trump is committed to doing a better job when it comes to disaster relief. That’s true for hurricane victims and flood victims in North Carolina. That’s true for California wildfire victims. We just have to do a better job. We need competent, good governance.” Vance said.
A scene from the January 6 riots at the US Capitol in 2021. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
“That doesn’t mean you can’t criticize the governor of California for, I think, some very bad decisions over a very long period of time. Some of these reservoirs have been dry for 15, 20 years. Fire hydrants are reported to be drying up as firefighters try to put out these fires. . There’s a serious lack of competent management in California, and I think that’s one of the reasons these fires have gotten so bad. We need to do a better job at both the state and federal level.”
Newsom’s press office, meanwhile, he referred to Trump’s previous statements which criticized the governor for alleged mismanagement of the water supply, with X’s post stating, “LADWP said that due to high water demand, pumping stations at lower elevations do not have enough tanks to fill pressure tanks at higher elevations, and the ongoing fire has hampered the ability crew to access the pumps.”
It added: “Generally speaking, there is currently no water shortage in Southern California, despite Trump’s claims that he would open some imaginary port.”
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Fox News’ Hanna Panreck and Gabriel Hays contributed to this report.
