“If I run and if I win, we will treat those people from January 6 fairly. We will treat them fairly. And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons. Because they are being treated so unfairly.” — Donald Trump
PENNSYLVANIA — On Saturday, at a campaign rally in Texas, Donald Trump expressed support for giving Jan. 6 insurrectionists pardons — and while the GOP PA-Gov candidates are “crafting their campaigns in his image,” Pennsylvanians deserve to know if they agree with Trump’s newest MAGA litmus test.
There’s no doubt that the crowded field of far-right candidates is feeling Donald Trump’s shadow over the “Trump primary” — and they’re all-in on the Big Lie. Lou Barletta has repeatedly refused to accept the results of the 2020 presidential election and brags about his support from insurrectionists. Dave White has made “election integrity” a central part of his campaign and endorsed the sham audit of the 2020 presidential election. Bill McSwain wrote his infamous letter to Trump falsely insinuating there was voter fraud in 2020, despite failing to prosecute a single case of voter fraud in 2020. Jake Corman underwent a “MAGA makeover,” which included risking 9 million Pennsylvanians’ personal, private information on behalf of the Big Lie. And Doug Mastriano not only was at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and paid thousands to bus Pennsylvanians to Washington, D.C. that day, but has also expressed support for insurrectionists, calling them “political prisoners.”
The Republican candidates have followed Trump’s example so far, but do they agree with him that those who broke the law by participating in the attack on the U.S. Capitol should receive pardons?
“On Jan. 6 2020, Trump-inspired extremists led an assault on our democracy — undermining the will of the American people and attacking our legislators and brave law enforcement officers who defended the Capitol that day. Now, Trump is pledging to pardon the criminals who are responsible for this dark day in our history,” said Pennsylvania Democratic Party spokesperson Marisa Nahem. “While the GOP gubernatorial candidates are clearly all-in on dangerous election conspiracies, Pennsylvanians deserve to know if they also stand with Trump in disrespecting Pennsylvanians, law enforcement, and our democratic processes by supporting pardons for the Jan. 6 insurrectionists.”
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