Vance Says Trump Won’t Issue Pardons for Violent Jan. 6 Defendants

‘If you committed violence on that day, obviously you shouldn’t be pardoned,’ the vice president-elect said.

Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), the vice president-elect, departs from the Senate chambers during a vote in the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 18, 2024. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Vice President-elect JD Vance said on Jan. 12 that individuals who were violent during the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021, “obviously” should not be pardoned. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to use his clemency power for people who have been charged in connection with the incident over the past four years.

Those who “protested peacefully” on Jan. 6 should receive a pardon, Vance told Fox News. He added that there is also a “little bit of a gray area” in some of those cases.