‘Bad Idea!’ GOP Senator Condemns Trump’s Jan. 6 Pardons for Those Convicted of Assaulting Police Officers

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) offered a blunt assessment on Tuesday when asked to react to President Donald Trump’s sweeping January 6th pardons — including for those who assaulted police officers.

Spectrum News Washington reporter Reuben Jones asked Tillis if he could “Just get your thoughts on the pardons from President Trump?”

“Yeah, I’ve got– Any any of. We’re going through it now. Many of them probably was the right thing to do. They made a bad a bad choice. But anybody who was convicted of assault on a police officer, I just I can’t get there at all. I think it was a bad idea,” Tillis replied.

Jones tried to follow up, “Are you worried that–”

Tillis interjected, “We can’t have a story about pardons without talking about the nonsense that Biden did on his way out the door.”

“Well, that’s going to be my follow question is, do you think the Senate needs to look at the power of the pardon for the presidency?” Jones pressed.

“I think it’s a legit question because we can’t get into the cycle where presidents are, you know, pardoning their friends, granting prospective pardons for charges that haven’t even been applied. I don’t think that that’s what the founding fathers had in mind when this ability to pardon was first vested in the executive branch,” Tillis replied.

During another, testier exchange with reporters on Capitol Hill, Tillis added:

What I’m trying to do is figure out there are some commutations to me I just can’t agree. I’m about to file two bills that will increase the penalties up to and including the death penalty for the murder of a police officer.

And increasing the penalties and creating federal crimes for assaulting a police officer. That should give you everything you need to know about my position. But it it is it’s it was surprising to me that it was a blanket pardon. Now, I’m going through the details.

Watch the clips above.