Trump suggests pardoning Capitol Hill rioters if he returns to power

Washington: Former President Donald Trump has insinuated that he may be willing to pardon the Capitol Hill rioters arrested for storming the seat of politics in Washington if he is given a chance to return to power in the next elections.

"If I run, and if I win we will treat those people from January 6th fairly. We will treat them fairly. And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons because they are being treated so unfairly," Trump said at a rally on Saturday night in Conroe, Texas.

While Trump has spoken out against the investigation into the riots, he has not yet made a distinct statement offering pardons yet.

Hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the US legislature in Washington on January 6 last year in an effort to block certification of President Joe Biden's November 2020 election victory.

The Democrat party has accused the former president of having stoked the riots through inflammatory social media content urging his followers to "stop the vote" and "fight like hell" as it became clear that he was not returning to power. Several Trump supporters had alleged voter fraud and ballot miscounting which further incited many of the rioters to storm Capitol Hill in an effort to "right" a perceived injustice.

A House of Representatives select committee is also in the midst of investigating how the Capitol Insurrection took place and whether Trump and members of his circle had a part in encouraging it.

Congressman Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the select committee, issued subpoenas to Ross Worthington, former advisor of Trump, Andy Surabian and Arthur Schwartz- Donald Trump Jr.'s aides - the House Select Committee said in a statement. The committee said it believes they have "relevant information" related to the riots.

Last year, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows was held in contempt of Congress after he ceased to cooperate with the committee, making it the first time the House has voted to hold a former member in contempt since the 1830s. The Democrat Party had released thousands of pages on message between Meadows and Trump Jr. Which had hinted that there was some involvement of Trump Sr.

Five people were killed and many injured as protestors stormed the building, with more than 700 people have been arrested as part of the investigation. Most of the accused are not charged with violence or vandalism but merely with having illegally entered the building and generally face misdemeanor charges.

However some longer sentences have been handed down and more of the approximately 225 individuals accused of acts of violence could face serious repercussions in court.