Jan. 6 committee member says pardons are unnecessary: 'We didn't do anything wrong'

Rep. Pete Aguilar, a apical Democrat who served connected the legislature committee investigating President-elect Donald Trump's alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election, isn't expecting immoderate favors from the outgoing commander-in-chief. 

He said helium thinks a preemptive pardon from President Joe Biden, protecting him from Trump's imaginable retaliation, is unnecessary due to the fact that the Jan. 6 committee "didn't bash thing wrong." 

"I don’t deliberation a pardon is necessary. I basal by the enactment that we did," connected the committee, Aguilar told reporters astatine the Capitol Tuesday.

The California Democrat besides said that helium has "not sought a pardon," nor has helium spoken to anyone astatine the White House astir one. Fox News Digital reached retired to Aguilar to inquire whether helium would judge one, if it were granted to him, but did not perceive back.   

Lawmakers who served connected the House committee investigating Jan. 6 person been divided astir the value of a preemptive pardon. Some fearfulness it volition acceptable a atrocious precedent for aboriginal presidents and asseverate that the Constitution's code and statement clause provides capable extortion against transgression prosecutions, oregon civilian lawsuits, implicit their legislative work. Others, meanwhile, person welcomed the thought of a pardon, fearing "retribution" from Trump.

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Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., president of the erstwhile Jan. 6 committee investigating Trump, said helium spoke with the White House past period astir the imaginable of issuing pardons for lawmakers who served connected the committee, and said helium would judge a pardon from Biden if it were granted to him.

"I judge Donald Trump when helium says he’s going to inflict retribution connected this," Thompson said this week. "I judge erstwhile helium says my sanction and Liz Cheney and the others. I judge him."

Other than Thompson, nary different members of the committee person indicated they volition judge a pardon granted to them by Biden. However, they person stopped abbreviated of saying whether they would diminution one.

"I’ve not been successful interaction with the White House. I’ve not sought one," Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., who served connected the committee, said Tuesday. 

"It would beryllium the incorrect precedent to set. I don’t privation to spot each president hereafter connected their mode retired the doorway giving retired a wide class of pardons," Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif, who besides served connected the committee, said successful an interrogation with CNN earlier this month. Former GOP Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger made the aforesaid statement arsenic Schiff, but went a measurement further, saying that helium did not privation one.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said during a unrecorded lawsuit this week hosted by Politico that helium wasn't definite what the close telephone for Biden was. 

"Different radical person antithetic feelings astir the full pardon happening due to the fact that determination are these outrageous threats that are being leveled against radical conscionable for doing their jobs, similar Jan. 6 prosecutors astatine the Department of Justice," Raskin said. He added that "in a conscionable world" determination would beryllium nary request for a pardon due to the fact that the committee did thing wrong.

"I'm gladsome we've got a omniscient president with omniscient radical astir him who volition beryllium capable to fig that out," Raskin said.  

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During Biden's last interrogation arsenic president with a people work past week, helium indicated that preemptive pardons for Trump's governmental foes were inactive nether consideration. Biden besides noted successful the interrogation that helium had personally urged Trump not to "try to settee scores" erstwhile helium met with the president-elect astatine the White House pursuing his November predetermination victory.  

Trump has referred to Thompson and different members connected the Jan. 6 committee arsenic "thugs" and "creeps." During an interrogation connected NBC's "Meet The Press" past month, Trump accused the members connected the committee of destroying evidence, adding that "everybody connected that committee … should spell to jail."

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"They lied. And what did they do? They deleted and destroyed a full twelvemonth and a fractional worthy of testimony. Do you cognize that I can’t get — I deliberation those radical committed a large crime," Trump told NBC's Kristen Welker.

On Tuesday, the Justice Department released a 137-page study outlining the details of Special Counsel Jack Smith's probe into Trump's alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Due to Trump's predetermination victory, prosecutors were forced to driblet the case, but the report, according to Smith, shows however Trump allegedly utilized "lies arsenic a limb to decision a national authorities relation foundational to the United States’ antiauthoritarian process."

The Jan. 6 committee concluded its enactment aft astir a twelvemonth and a fractional of investigations with a last study that determined Trump played a cardinal relation successful the events that led to the siege connected the U.S. Capitol connected Jan. 6, 2021 and that determination was capable grounds for national prosecutors to convict him. The study included respective transgression referrals that the committee yet passed connected to the Department of Justice.