WASHINGTON D.C. — On Day 1 of his second term, President Trump signed a proclamation commuting the sentences of 14 individuals and granting “a full, complete and unconditional pardon to all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.”
Trump’s action affects approximately 1,500 Americans, many of whom were still being held in federal prisons at the time Trump signed the pardon. The president said he expected “the hostages” to be released the same night.
“We hope they come out tonight, frankly,” stated President Trump.
Around 7:15 p.m. PST, a local woman with close ties to a man incarcerated in a federal prison at Victorville, California contacted Kootenai Journal stating, “the warden is on his way to release all the J6’s in his jail.”
Earlier in the day, Trump spoke to a crowd of 20,000 promising all political prisoners targeted by Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) would be granted relief and used the phase “hostages” to refer to those prosecuted over events related to January 6.
During his inaugural address, Trump spoke about how an assassin’s bullet ripped through his ear at a campaign rally and said he was “saved by God to Make America Great Again.”
Trump signed approximately 50 executive orders on Day 1, which included pulling out of the Paris Agreement, saving taxpayers an estimated $1 trillion, and withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization (WHO). Full texts of the orders can be found at https://www.whitehouse.gov/news/.
