January 6 & the Pardons
On his first day back in office, President Trump pardoned nearly all of the roughly 1,500 people charged in connection with the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol — and the fallout from that decision, not the riot itself, is what's still generating headlines and litigation in 2026.
- The blanket pardon initially had one carve-out — About a dozen Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders convicted of seditious conspiracy or related offenses got their prison sentences commuted rather than a full pardon (BBC).
- That carve-out closed in 2026 — The DOJ moved to vacate those remaining convictions outright while the cases were on appeal; the D.C. Circuit granted the request in May, and a federal judge finalized the dismissal in July, ending the last active prosecutions from the riot (The Guardian; Washington Post).
- A second, separate controversy grew out of the pardons — In May 2026 the DOJ announced a $1.776–1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund," created as part of a settlement in which Trump dropped his own $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS, meant to compensate people who say they were unfairly investigated or prosecuted under the Biden administration — including pardoned January 6 defendants (The New York Times).
- The fund triggered bipartisan backlash and is currently on hold — After a federal judge temporarily blocked it, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche testified in June 2026 that the DOJ would "not move forward with the fund, period," though he declined to formally rescind the announcement in writing, leaving its ultimate fate unresolved (Time).
Where each side stands
Every point below is sourced to a real organization, official, or news report — click through to read it in full context.
Conservative
Trump and allies argue the Biden-era DOJ pursued unusually harsh charges and sentences against January 6 defendants for political reasons, and that clemency was a necessary correction, not a reward (NBC News).
He has called January 6 "a day of love," referred to defendants as "patriots" and "hostages," and personally advocated for Ashli Babbitt, the Trump supporter shot and killed by Capitol Police while breaching the building, whose family the DOJ paid a $5 million wrongful-death settlement in 2025 (19th News; CNN).
DOJ prosecutors argued in their court filings that continuing to defend those convictions was inconsistent with the president's clemency decision, a position the D.C. Circuit ultimately accepted (The Guardian).
Blanche has said the fund resulted from resolving Trump's actual $10 billion lawsuit over the 2019 leak of his tax returns, that "anybody" who says they were mistreated by the prior administration could apply, and that it wasn't written to exclusively benefit January 6 defendants (NBC News; Politico).
He told CNN in June 2026 he still viewed it as "a beautiful thing" and that people who were "crooked" by the government deserve to be "reimbursed," calling many of the pardoned defendants "great people" (CNN).
Polling near the start of Trump's term found most Republicans favored pardons for at least non-violent participants, with strongest support (88%) among self-identified MAGA Republicans, even as backing narrowed sharply once violent offenses were specified (Protect Democracy/YouGov).
Progressive
Of the roughly 1,500 people charged, more than a third (about 600) had been accused of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing law enforcement, and the blanket pardon covered them regardless (The Hill).
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly dismissed the Proud Boys' remaining charges only because he said legal precedent left him no choice, while warning about the implications of the administration's approach (Washington Post).
The New York Times reported in June 2026 that dozens of pardoned January 6 participants have since been charged with new offenses, and NPR reported that one pardoned rioter had a prior conviction for child sexual abuse (NYT; NPR).
Rep. Jamie Raskin called it "a racket," arguing Trump effectively acted as both plaintiff and beneficiary of a Justice Department settlement his own administration controls, funded from the Judgment Fund without congressional authorization (Salon).
Officers Harry Dunn and Daniel Hodges filed suit calling the fund a "corrupt sham" and a "taxpayer-funded slush fund" that could compensate their own attackers (NY Post; The New York Times).
An Economist/YouGov poll found just 24% of all respondents supported the fund versus 49% opposed, including a majority of Republicans (52%) and nearly half of MAGA supporters (45%) (Forbes).
A June 2026 poll of nine Senate battleground states, commissioned by the progressive advocacy group Demand Justice, found voters disapproved of the January 6 pardons by a 24-point margin (62%–38%) and described the issue as "a defining vulnerability" for Republican candidates (Demand Justice/GQR).
Key facts both sides cite
Data and polling that inform the debate — both camps draw on these figures, even when they read them differently.
Scope of the pardons — On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued "full, complete, and unconditional pardons" to nearly all of the roughly 1,500 people charged in connection with January 6; more than a third of those charged (about 600 people) had faced accusations of resisting, obstructing, or assaulting law enforcement (The Hill; BBC).
Convictions status — A dozen or so Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders convicted of seditious conspiracy initially received commutations rather than pardons; the DOJ later sought to vacate those convictions entirely, which the D.C. Circuit granted in May 2026 and a district judge finalized in July 2026 (The Guardian; Washington Post).
The Anti-Weaponization Fund's status — The $1.776–1.8 billion fund was announced May 18, 2026 as part of a settlement of Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS; after a federal judge temporarily blocked it, Acting AG Todd Blanche testified in June 2026 that the DOJ would not move forward with it, though the administration has not formally rescinded the announcement and Trump has said the fund could still be revived (Time; PBS).
Every citation on this page
- BBC — Trump pardons give Jan 6 defendants nearly everything they wanted
- The Guardian — US DoJ files for overturning January 6 convictions for far-right groups' members
- Washington Post — Judge ends Jan. 6 case against Proud Boys with warning about Trump pardons
- The New York Times — Trump's "Anti-Weaponization" Fund, Explained
- Time — What's the Status of Trump's Anti-Weaponization "Slush" Fund?
- NBC News — 'Appalling': Current and former prosecutors lament Trump's Jan. 6 pardons
- 19th News — Justice Department to pay $5 million to family of Ashli Babbitt
- CNN — Trump administration to settle Ashli Babbitt wrongful death suit for $5 million
- NBC News — Trump administration appears to back off $1.8 billion 'anti-weaponization' fund
- Politico — Trump defends 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' amid GOP blowup
- CNN — Trump tells CNN he doesn't know if $1.8 billion fund is dead, calling it 'a beautiful thing'
- Protect Democracy/YouGov — Poll on presidential pardons (January 2025)
- The Hill — Almost 6 in 10 opposed Trump pardons for Jan. 6 rioters
- The New York Times — Granted Clemency by Trump, Scores of Jan. 6 Rioters Have New Crimes
- NPR — A Jan. 6 rioter pardoned by Trump was convicted of sexually abusing children
- Salon — Dems accuse Trump of creating $1.7 billion "slush fund" for Jan. 6 defendants
- NY Post — Jan. 6 cops sue to block $1.776B 'slush fund' created in wake of Trump settlement with IRS
- The New York Times — Jan. 6 Police Officers Sue to Block Trump's $1.8 Billion Fund
- Forbes — Trump's Supporters Reject His Anti-Weaponization Fund In New Poll
- Demand Justice/GQR — Senate battleground poll memo
- PBS — Justice Department scraps Trump's 'anti-weaponization fund' after pushback from Congress
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