Trump issues sweeping pardons for Jan. 6 convicts
New President unveils blizzard of executive orders
Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for January 21, 2025:
Senate okays Rubio as Secretary of State.
Laken Riley bill approved by the Senate.
The Capitol quickly gets back to normal.
JANUARY 6. Just over four years after thousands of his supporters laid siege to the U.S. Congress in a bid to keep him in power, President Donald Trump last night gave clemency to almost every single person convicted in the Jan. 6 investigation, including those who attacked police officers defending the Capitol on that day.
MILITIA GROUPS. Trump specifically commuted the sentences of 14 members of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys - two militia groups which were central to attacks on police on Jan. 6. The 14 included people convicted of seditious conspiracy - basically an effort to overthrow the government.
TRUMP. "This proclamation ends a grave national injustice that has been perpetrated upon the American people over the last four years and begins a process of national reconciliation," Trump said, making it sort of sound like the North was accepting Confederates back into the Union.
BACK THE BLUE. Democrats were furious. "The President's actions are an outrageous insult to our justice system," said ex-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. "Trump’s decision to pardon is a grotesque abuse of authority and a betrayal of our democracy," said Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT). "This is the Joker releasing the lunatics of the asylum to unleash all hell," added Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA).
POLICE. Some of the officers attacked that day were angry. "The leader of the Republican Party pardoned hundreds of violent cop assaulters," former D.C. officer Michael Fanone said on CNN. "I won't hold my breath for people to be outraged," said ex-Capitol Police Sergeant Harry Dunn.
GOP. The Trump move came after a number of prominent Congressional Republicans had publicly urged Trump not to pardon those who assaulted police - but that message clearly did not get through to the President. While Democrats denounced Trump, GOP lawmakers said nothing.
TRUMP. The U.S. Senate wasted little time kicking off President Donald Trump's second term in office, as Senators last night approved a GOP bill to get tough on criminal illegal immigrants, and voted unanimously to confirm the first member of Trump's Cabinet.
GOP. "More confirmation votes will follow," promised Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who pressed for fast action by Senators on a series of Trump Cabinet nominees in the next few days. "The President needs to have his team in place so that we lose no time."
STATE DEPARTMENT. The first Cabinet member approved was probably the easiest of the bunch, as the Senate voted 99-0 for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) as Secretary of State. “I know he will do a fantastic job leading the Department of State," said Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL).
NOMINEES. Several Senate committees sent other Trump Cabinet nominees to the floor last night: Kristi Noem for Homeland Security, John Ratcliffe for CIA Director, Russ Vought for White House Budget Director, and Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary. It was not clear when those votes might occur.
HEARINGS. Two other Trump Cabinet picks will get their confirmation hearing today: ex-Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) for Veterans Secretary, and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) for the post of United Nations Ambassador.
LAKEN RILEY. Not only did Senators take a first step on the Trump Cabinet, but they also approved a GOP immigration bill, as the Senate voted 64-35 to approve the Laken Riley bill, which now goes to the House. The plan requires the feds to jail illegal immigrants accused of theft, assault, and attacks on police officers.
GOP. "This law will make sure that illegal immigrants who are charged with crimes can be detained and deported quickly," said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). "Tonight's passage of the Laken Riley Act is a victory for law and order," added Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC). Trump is likely to sign it into law later this week.
BIPARTISAN. A dozen Democrats joined with Republicans to vote for the bill, showing just how much their party has moved since the election on illegal immigration. “Anyone who commits a crime should be held accountable,” said Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV).
DEMS. There was an interesting pattern in the vote. Both Democratic Senators from Nevada, both from Arizona, both from New Hampshire, both from Michigan, both from Georgia, one from Pennsylvania (Fetterman) and one from Virginia (Warner). That’s a lot of swing state territory.
WARNOCK. The most interesting ‘Yes’ vote on that list was Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), who last week voted to filibuster. "This bill isn't the legislation I would have written," Warnock said, urging his colleagues to work on broader bipartisan immigration legislation. (That still seems unlikely.)
WHITE HOUSE. On his first full day of his second term in office, President Trump will huddle at the White House with GOP Congressional leaders. “House Republicans will work closely with President Trump to deliver the America First agenda,” said Speaker Mike Johnson, as GOP lawmakers celebrated Trump’s return.
INAUGURATION. It was a big party for the GOP on Monday, as Republicans clearly had a great time at Donald Trump’s inauguration. (Democrats - not so much.) The themes of Trump's return were familiar. "America will reclaim its rightful place as the greatest, most powerful, most respected nation on Earth," Trump declared. "For American citizens, Jan. 20, 2025, is Liberation Day," he added.
THE RETURN. To my ear, Trump's inaugural address sort of reminded me of a State of the Union. It certainly wasn't the 'American Carnage' theme that Trump offered up in 2017. This time, Trump gave a speech jammed with all sorts of campaign priorities and promises, as he produced a tsunami of news on day one.
VIP’S ONLY. Only the biggest of big shots got into the Rotunda for Trump’s swearing-in. These photos were taken by Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD).
ORDERS. On his first day, Trump swiftly signed a series of executive orders. They included:
Declaring a national emergency at the southern border.
Ordering a halt to all new federal regulations.
Federal worker hiring freeze.
Renaming the Gulf of Mexico.
Renaming Mount Denali in Alaska.
Withdrawing from the Paris climate accords.
Ending most remote work for federal employees.
Ending birthright citizenship.
Declaring that there are only two official sexes - male and female.
WEATHER. While the ceremonies were brought inside for the first time since 1985 - because of winter weather - it really wasn't that bad outside on Monday. The temperature at game time was 23 degrees. The sun was out, and there was some wind. (I've been a lot colder on the campaign trail in Iowa and New Hampshire.)
INSIDE. You could tell that Trump was happy to be inside the Rotunda. "It was a beautiful place to have an inauguration," Trump told Congressional leaders as he signed first-day proclamations just off the Senate floor. "The temperature was 72 degrees," Trump noted with a sense of satisfaction.
PUBLIC. While I certainly understand that it felt nice to be inside, I sure hope being inside for the swearing-in doesn't become standard procedure. No matter who wins, it is nice for that person's supporters to be able to celebrate that victory on Inauguration Day.
BEHIND THE SCENES. Just minutes after President Trump left Capitol Hill on Monday afternoon, workers began breaking down everything imaginable that was set up inside the Capitol for the inauguration - whether it was TV cameras, lights, cables, and more. I even stumbled on a conference room in the basement which featured all sorts of security cameras being watched by police.
PARDONS. Joe Biden did not go quietly in his final hours in office, handing out a series of preemptive pardons for members of his own family and a series of people tied to the Jan. 6 investigation. Biden said it was all about protecting them from retaliation by the Trump Justice Department and the GOP Congress.
BIDEN. "My family has been subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me - the worst kind of partisan politics," Biden said. "Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end," as Biden said his family had done nothing wrong.
FAMILY. Biden pardoned both of his brothers - Francis and James Biden. Also pardoned was James's wife Sara. There was also a pardon for Biden's sister Valerie and her husband John Owens.
NOT GUILTY. "The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that they engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense," Biden wrote.
GOP. Republicans were livid about Biden's final actions. "Four years of the most corrupt administration in US history and it ends with the ultimate admission that they're all a bunch of criminals," said Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA).
SILENCE. It wasn't hard to tell what Democrats thought about the last-minute pardons for members of the Biden family. The silence of Democrats in both the House and Senate told the story. Many of them weren't happy with the Hunter Biden pardon, and the lack of comments yesterday hammered home the same message.
PIT STOP. It was back to the third floor men's room in the Capitol yesterday to watch President Trump escort President Biden to Marine One and send the Bidens on their way. This time it wasn't mostly reporters and photographers - it was police officers and physical plant workers coming in to get a historic photo (even if that one column was in the way of the helicopter).
PRESS PASS. It took a little extra work over the weekend, but my friends in the press galleries helped make sure that I had all of my security passes to get me into the Capitol yesterday. I went down to the Rotunda around 7 am to get a look, since there was no chance that I was going to be there for the Trump swearing-in ceremony.
CHANGE OF PACE. Usually, I get run up and down the flagpole by security on Capitol Hill for a day like this. But somehow, I avoided trouble yesterday. The police and security aides waved me in like I was an old friend.
RAP SHEET. I have used this section of my newsletter to repeatedly detail the crimes committed on Jan. 6. President Trump's pardons will end the prosecution of all the Jan. 6 cases brought by the feds. It won't erase what happened that day, and how a mob tried to keep Trump in power.
TRIAL. Last night, prosecutors asked a judge to drop charges against three Minnesota men who tangled with police officers outside the Capitol on Jan. 6. Their trial had been scheduled to start this morning in a courthouse just down the hill from the Capitol.
MUSE OF HISTORY. January 21, 1836. On this date, Rep. Francis Pickens of South Carolina criticized growing abolition efforts, rejecting the idea that Congress could do away with slavery. "Whether slavery be right or wrong," Pickens said, "the subject is exclusively for the consideration of the State Governments." Pickens also attacked New York City, home to abolition societies. "I believe there is more want, more evil, and more suffering, in that single city, than exists from the Potomac to the Mississippi."
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House convenes at 12 noon.
The Senate meets at 11 am.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.
Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
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Regardless of presidential pardons Jamie's meticulous documentation of the J6 perpetrators are ample testimony to the historic lawbreaking that occurred that day. I cannot imagine how Trump's wholesale pardons will survive as the years go by, but those of us who have followed the aftermath in these newsletters will always know how truly bizarre his gestures were.
A day will come, Jamie, when your work will be rich material for a historic documentary about the political circus which is about to unfold.
Again Jamie, thanks for the hard work and giving us a view from within, told with your years of experience. My subscription to your Regular Order is the best way I know to get an honest account--hard to come by in this age.