Attorney General Todd Blanche Justifies Trump’s Dangerous Pardons of Jan. 6 Insurrectionists on Meet the Press
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Todd Blanche appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press to defend President Trump’s reckless pardoning of Jan. 6 rioters, downplaying the clear contradiction between supporting law enforcement and excusing violent extremists. Blanche attempted to deflect criticism by comparing Trump’s actions to Biden’s, ignoring the unique threat posed by the Capitol attackers.
Attorney General Todd Blanche appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press to rationalize President Donald Trump’s indefensible pardons of individuals convicted for the violent Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Blanche insisted there was no inconsistency between his supposed commitment to prosecuting assaults on law enforcement and Trump’s decision to let right-wing extremists off the hook.
When moderator Kristen Welker challenged Blanche about the hypocrisy of pardoning those who assaulted police while claiming to protect officers, Blanche dismissed the contradiction, stating, "There’s nothing inconsistent about that. Any president’s pardon powers are not limited. So when I say … we will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law, that is absolutely what President Trump expects, absolutely what I expect of our prosecutors." He attempted to hide behind the president’s constitutional powers, disregarding the grave consequences of undermining accountability for violent attacks on democracy.
Welker pressed Blanche, highlighting how Trump’s pardons erased any semblance of justice for the rioters. Blanche, refusing to acknowledge the harm, claimed there was nothing wrong with the pardons and tried to equate them to Joe Biden’s, saying, "Do not forget that a few days before President Trump pardoned the individuals … President Biden pardoned hundreds of criminals, many of whom were quite violent. So that’s his right to do that just like it’s President Trump’s right to do that." This false equivalence ignores the fact that Biden’s pardons did not involve individuals who attempted to overturn a democratic election.
Asked what message this sends to police officers, Blanche insisted the department’s stance was unchanged, despite the clear betrayal of law enforcement by excusing their attackers. The interview also touched on the scrapping of the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” a move Blanche confirmed, and he refused to rule out the possibility of federal compensation for Jan. 6 participants, noting that any citizen can file a claim against the government.
Blanche concluded by claiming the president would never ask him to do anything illegal or unethical, a hollow assurance given the administration’s record of undermining the rule of law.