Among the 1,500 people Donald Trump granted clemency over the January 6 insurrection, two stand out: Enrique Tarrio and Stewart Rhodes, who were serving long sentences for their key roles in plotting the storming of the Capitol.
As one of his first acts in office, Trump pardoned Tarrio and commuted the sentence of Rhodes, in a statement of intent from a president who has insisted the violent siege of the seat of government, which is linked to nine deaths, was a “day of love”.
Tarrio and Rhodes were released hours after Trump’s broad presidential action, which saw people involved in the attack either pardoned, have their sentences commuted, or their ongoing criminal cases dismissed.
“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,” the action read.
But others may feel differently – particularly when it comes to Tarrio, the former leader of the far-right organization Proud Boys, and Rhodes, the founder of the rightwing Oath Keepers militia group.
Both men were convicted of seditious conspiracy for their role in the attack, with Tarrio sentenced to 22 years in prison and Rhodes given 18. It was a fall from power for the conspirators, who juries ruled had served as ringleaders in the insurrection.
Tarrio had pleaded for leniency in his sentencing hearing, describing January 6 as a “national embarrassment” and apologizing to the police officers who defended the Capitol and the lawmakers who fled in fear.
“I am not a political zealot. Inflicting harm or changing the results of the election was not my goal,” Tarrio said. “Please show me mercy,” he said, adding, “I ask you that you not take my 40s from me.”
The appeal proved ineffective, as US district judge Timothy Kelly said Tarrio had been motivated by “revolutionary zeal” to lead a conspiracy that resulted in “200 men, amped up for battle, encircling the Capitol”. Noting that Tarrio had not previously shown any remorse publicly for his crimes, the judge said a stiff punishment was necessary to deter future political violence.
Tarrio was not in Washington when Proud Boys members joined thousands of Trump supporters to storm the Capitol. He had been arrested two days before the Capitol riot on charges that he defaced a Black Lives Matter banner during an earlier rally in the nation’s capital, and was ordered to leave the city.
But prosecutors said Tarrio organized and led the Proud Boys’ assault from afar, inspiring followers with his charisma and penchant for propaganda. During the riot, Tarrio posted encouraging messages on social media, expressing pride and urging followers to stay at the Capitol.
He posted a picture of rioters in the Senate chamber with the caption “1776”, the year of the Declaration of Independence. The trial heard also that several days before the riot a girlfriend had sent Tarrio a document entitled “1776 Returns”, which prosecutors said called for storming and occupying government buildings “for the purpose of getting the government to overturn the election results”.
Tarrio had asked Trump for a pardon in early January, his lawyer arguing that he was “nothing more than a proud American that believes in true conservative values”. It seems Trump agreed.
Rhodes, meanwhile, was sentenced two months earlier than Tarrio, with US district Judge Amit Mehta saying the Oath Keepers founder posed a continued threat to the US government, given it was clear he “wants democracy in this country to devolve into violence”.
Like Tarrio, Rhodes did not enter the Capitol during the riot. Instead, he and his followers amassed weapons and set up “quick reaction force” teams at a Virginia hotel that could ferry guns into the nation’s capital if they were needed to support their plot.
Rhodes, a Yale-educated former paratrooper and disbarred attorney, founded the Oath Keepers militia group in 2009. At his trial, jurors heard how he rallied followers to fight to keep Trump in office, warned of a “bloody” civil war and expressed regret that the Oath Keepers did not bring rifles.
Prosecutors said Rhodes had plotted to use force against Congress to prevent the election certification, and sought to paint Rhodes, who denied the charges, as a liar, showing him his own text messages, videos, photos and recordings. These included Rhodes saying he could have hanged the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, from a lamp-post.
In December, after Trump had spent months vowing to pardon the January 6 rioters and plotters, Mehta gave a stark warning about Rhodes in an interview with Associated Press.
“The notion that Stewart Rhodes could be absolved of his actions is frightening and ought to be frightening to anyone who cares about democracy in this country,” Mehta said.
• This article was amended on 22 January 2025. A previous version said that Enrique Tarrio and Stewart Rhodes both had their sentences commuted. In fact, Rhodes had his sentence commuted and Tarrio was pardoned.
