When the history books are written, they will likely be known as the Seditious Six, the six members of Congress who wanted failed, one-term, twice-impeached former president Donald Trump to issue them a pardon for their role in the January 6, 2021 coup attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
As House Select Committee member Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) noted during Thursday’s hearing, the only reason someone would ask for a presidential pardon is because he or she knows they’re guilty.
These are the six Republicans named by the committee:
- Rep. Andy Biggs (AZ)
- Rep. Mo Brooks (AL)
- Rep. Matt Gaetz (FL)
- Rep. Louie Gohmert (TX)
- Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA)
- Rep. Scott Perry (PA)
Videotaped testimony from Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows made the name names public.
Former White House senior adviser Eric Herschmann said it was his understanding that Gaetz wanted a pardon that would have included everything illegal he had done during his life, which likely would have included allegations that he sexually trafficked an underage girl, a crime that could potentially send him to prison for the rest of his life if he’s charged, tried, and found guilty in federal court.
Herschmann explained:
“The general tone was, we may get prosecuted because we were defensive of you know, the president’s positions on these things. The pardon that he was discussing, or that he was requesting as broad as you could describe from the beginning of, I remember he said, from the beginning of time up until today, for any and all things.”
If the Justice Department does decide to indict the six members of Congress named today prior to the November midterm election, that could sink their chances of reelection, especially for Greene, who is serving her first term and could potentially be vulnerable, especially with a high voter turnout expected in Georgia, which also has high-profile gubernatorial and Senate races on ballot.
