Trump teases pardoning Jan. 6 rioters on Day 1

(WASHINGTON) — President-Elect Donald Trump teased pardoning some of the Jan. 6 rioters on Day 1 of his administration, telling his supporters that they will be “very happy” with his decision.

“Tomorrow, everybody in this very large arena will be very happy with my decision on the J6 hostages,” Trump said Sunday at his rally at Capital One Arena. “Very happy. I think you’ll be very, very happy. I would say about 99.9% in this beautiful arena.”

A violent mob of pro-Trump protesters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, fighting with officers, breaking into offices and destroying property.

After the attack on the U.S. Capitol by rioters seeking to overturn the 2020 election, more than 1,580 people were charged criminally in federal court, according to the Department of Justice. Over 1,000 have pleaded guilty.

Trump’s team has drafted a list of potential pardons for Jan. 6 defendants to issue on Day 1, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News on Sunday.

The pardons could come very soon after Trump is sworn in at the Capitol Rotunda. One option that has been discussed is to issue these pardons inside the Capitol.

Trump said last March that he was “inclined to pardon many” of the rioters.

“I can’t say for every single one, because a couple of them, probably they got out of control,” he said on social media at the time.

Nearly 1,600 individuals have faced charges associated with the Capitol attack, according to figures released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

That includes 608 individuals who have faced charges for assaulting, resisting or interfering with law enforcement trying to protect the complex that day, the office said. Approximately 140 law enforcement officers were injured during the riot, the DOJ has said.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said it is evaluating whether to bring charges in roughly 200 cases that have been referred to them by the FBI, about 60 of which involve potential felony charges involving allegations of assault or impeding law enforcement.

At least 221 individuals have been found guilty at contested trials in U.S. District Court, the DOJ said. Another 40 individuals have been convicted following an agreed-upon set of facts presented to and accepted by the Court.

President Joe Biden on Monday issued preemptive pardons to potential targets of the incoming Trump administration, including lawmakers who served on the House Jan. 6 Committee.

Trump, in his 2024 campaign, repeatedly vowed “retribution” on his political enemies, specifically singling out lawmakers like Liz Cheney, who investigated the attack on the Capitol. Trump said Cheney and other committee members should be put in jail.

ABC News’ Meredith Deliso and Katherine Faulders contributed to this report.

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