The leaders of two far-right organizations who were pardoned by President Trump for their actions on Jan. 6, 2021, say they want the president to seek retribution on their behalf.
Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys leader, told Alex Jones on his show “Infowars” that the measure of success to him “is going to be retribution,” The New York Times reported.
Tarrio was released from prison earlier this week after receiving a full pardon from Trump. He was serving a 22-year sentence after he was convicted of sedition related to the attack on the Capitol.
“Twenty-two years — this is not a short sentence,” the 42-year-old said. “That’s the rest of my life. So, Trump literally gave me my life back.”
He criticized the jury and the criminal trial against him, saying they only cared about putting Trump supporters behind bars.
Stewart Rhodes, the founder of the Oath Keepers, had his sentence commuted by Trump to time served on Monday. He said it was a “good day for America.”
Rhodes said he hoped Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, Kash Patel, would “get in there and clean house” at the bureau. He called for prosecutors who “suborned perjury” to be prosecuted.
Rhodes was serving an 18-year prison term for his actions in Washington four years ago. The federal judge who oversaw his case said the idea of him being absolved of his actions was “frightening.”
He and other supporters of Jan. 6 stood outside a D.C. jail for other defendants to be released after Trump’s pardon.
Michael Fanone, a former Washington police officer who was attacked during the riot, said he is concerned that Trump issued pardons to people who hurt him and other law enforcement members.
“I certainly feel as though I have a target on my back and … there’s a target on the back of my family members, and not just from these violent criminals, but from the government itself, from Donald Trump’s government,” Fanone said Wednesday.
As Trump enters his second term and already followed through on his campaign promise to pardon Jan. 6 defendants, there’s concern Trump will use the FBI and Department of Justice to seek retribution against his political opponents.
