Former US President Donald Trump said he would pardon people convicted in the January 6 Capitol riots if elected to the White House in 2024.
The Republican, who has announced his intention to run for president again in the next election, made the remarks in a rare appearance on CNN at a town hall in New Hampshire. When host Kaitlan Collins asked him if he acknowledged losing to President Joe Biden in the 2020 election, Trump reiterated his previous claims that the election was rigged.
“It was a terrible election,” Trump said, drawing applause from his supporters who were present at the event. He refused to express remorse for the violence at the Capitol in January 2021, in which hundreds of his supporters stormed the building in an attempt to prevent Congress from ratifying the election results.
“I tend to pardon many of them. I can’t say about every one, because some of them are probably out of control,” Trump said.
-Five people, including a police officer, died during or after the riot at the Capitol building, more than 140 police officers were injured.
-More than 950 people were arrested because of the violence in early 2021, according to the Ministry of Justice website. They were charged with assaulting or resisting police officers, assaulting media persons, entering a prohibited area with weapons and destroying government property, among other things.
The uproar occurred after Trump gave a speech at the White House claiming that the election was stolen from him. “We are fighting and if you don’t fight, you won’t have a country anymore,” he said just before the riot took place.
In a speech at the town hall about this day, Trump said: “They thought the election was rigged, they were there with love in their hearts, it was unbelievable, and it was a beautiful day.”
