During a Sunday interview on Meet The Press, President-elect Donald Trump called for the prosecution of every member of the House January 6 Committee, highlighting that the committee was formed in a manner that defied decades of House precedent established by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Additionally, Trump informed host Kristen Welker that he intends to honor his commitment to pardon the January 6 protesters on his first day in office.
“I want to look at everything. We’re going to look at individual cases, but I’m going to be acting very quickly,” Trump said, adding that the process will begin as soon as he is inaugurated on January 20. “Yeah, I’m looking for these pardons. These people have been there. How long is it? Three or four years? You know, by the way, they’ve been in there for years, and they’re in a filthy, disgusting place that shouldn’t even be allowed to be open.”
“And [former Rep. Liz] Cheney [R-Wyoming] was behind it, and so was [Rep.] Benny Thompson [D-MS] and everybody on that committee. We’re going to… For what they did, honestly, they should go to jail,” Trump said. “They should go to jail?” Welker then followed up. “I think everybody on the committee, anybody that voted in favor,” the president-elect responded. The committee broke decades of congressional tradition when then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) denied then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) the authority to appoint Republican members. Typically, congressional committees—excluding the January 6 committee—allow the opposition party to select its own members.
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WATCH: Will Donald #Trump pardon himself? President-elect goes public
Also thrashes everybody on Jan. 6 Committee: ‘Honestly, they should go to jail’ #J6 #MeetthePress pic.twitter.com/g6vTzWiE0F
— WorldNetDaily (@worldnetdaily) December 8, 2024
Instead, Pelosi appointed Cheney, who lost her 2022 primary race to U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-WY), and Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), who resigned before facing defeat, as the “Republican” members. This resulted in the committee becoming predominantly one-sided, presenting selective videos and witness statements as evidence that Trump “incited an insurrection” while overlooking instances where Trump encouraged supporters to remain peaceful.
The committee subsequently hired a Hollywood producer to enhance selective footage used to support the “insurrection” narrative during primetime hearings. Additionally, the panel received unverified testimony from several anti-Trump individuals, including former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson. Hutchinson recounted an unusual incident in which Trump allegedly took control of the steering wheel from Secret Service agents during the January 6 protests. Her claims have been disputed by Secret Service personnel, and House Republicans are currently investigating her for perjury. In addition, U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) has since confirmed that all deposition tapes from committee interviews have been destroyed.
