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PODCAST

Trump’s Ugly New Rants About Jan. 6 Pardons Suddenly Seem Very Ominous

With Trump escalating his threats to pardon MAGA supporters who attacked the Capitol, former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann explains how this shows the rule of law is in deep peril.

Trump speaks at a rally while wearing a MAGA hat
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, on June 28.

At last week’s debate, Donald Trump ranted that the January 6 defendants are “so innocent,” raging that President Biden is “destroying their lives.” Then at a rally, Trump called for their immediate release, while proclaiming victory over a big Supreme Court ruling that seemingly weakens the cases against the attackers. Former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann just co-authored a good new piece explaining that the ruling will only impact a small percentage of those cases. Still, if Trump wins, he’ll pardon untold numbers of those convicted. So we talked to Weissmann, who went deep on on that ruling and on why Trump’s pardon threats endanger the rule of law at its foundations. Listen to this episode here.