Jacob Chansley, who previously called himself the “QAnon Shaman,” said he has no regrets after being pardoned by President Donald Trump alongside more than 1,500 others for their roles in the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.
“I regret nothing,” he said during an interview on BBC‘s Newsnight program on Tuesday evening. “Because I’m a better man because of what I went through.”
Newsweek has contacted Chansley for further comment via a message on social media.
Why It Matters
On his first day back in the White House on Monday, Trump pardoned or commuted the sentences of more than 1,500 people who were convicted in connection with the attack.
They are the culmination of his efforts to downplay the violence of the day a mob of his supporters, fueled by false claims that the Democrats stole the 2020 election, stormed the Capitol to halt the certification of Joe Biden‘s victory. More than 100 police officers were injured, while several people died during and in the days following the attack.
Trump’s action freed from prison dozens of people who viciously assaulted officers, as well as the leaders of far-right extremist groups convicted of orchestrating violent plots to stop the peaceful transfer of power.
Newsweek has contacted the White House for comment via email.
Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images
What To Know
Chansley wore a fur hat with horns and was covered in red, white and blue face paint during the attack on the Capitol, making him one of the more recognizable figures on the day.
Authorities said he was among the first rioters to enter the Capitol.
He pleaded guilty in September 2021 to a felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding and was sentenced two months later to 41 months in prison. He served about 27 months before being transferred to a Phoenix halfway house in March 2023, according to The Associated Press.
Chansley told Newsnight‘s Victoria Derbyshire that he received the news about his pardon from his lawyer while he was at the gym.
“I walked outside and I screamed ‘freedom’ at the top of my lungs and then gave a good Native American war cry,” he said.
He said he had expected Trump to “be a man of his word like he has been for decades.”
Asked if he supported pardons for those who assaulted police officers, Chansley said he trusted Trump’s judgment.
“Well, if they served their time, if they were in prison at the time, you know, then, you know, they did their time, they did their sentence, I leave it to the President’s discretion,” he said.
“In all honesty, he’s the one that has the Department of Justice and the files at his disposal. He’s the one that has the large legal team. I don’t have any of that stuff. I trust his judgment way more than I trust the judgment of people like Merrick Garland or Joe Biden.”
Asked if he would do it again, Chansley said: “If I had the knowledge I have now and I could go back, I would try to stop the whole thing from happening. I’d go down to the Capitol before Trump was even on freaking stage, and I would hold sacred space. I would say a prayer. I would get everybody focused on God and God alone and not easily provoked.”
What People Are Saying
Shortly after learning of his pardon, Chansley wrote in a post on X: “I got a pardon baby! Thank you President Trump! Now I am gonna buy some motha f***in guns! I love this country! God Bless America.”
Winston Pingeon, a former Capitol Police officer who defended the Capitol on January 6, 2021, told Newsnight the pardons are “a slap in the face.”
He said: “It’s so utterly disrespectful to these officers who showed up on January 6, just like they have every day since, to make many personal sacrifices of themselves in service to Congress, in service to our nation and to American people, of trying to make this world a better place.”
Trump defended the pardons during a news conference at the White House on Tuesday, saying: “These people have already served years in prison, and they’ve served them viciously. It’s a disgusting prison. It’s been horrible. It’s inhumane. It’s been a terrible, terrible thing.”
Several Republican lawmakers have broken with Trump over the pardons.
Senator Susan Collins told Newsweek: “I do not support pardons given to people who engaged in violence on January 6, including assaulting police officers, or breaking windows to get into the Capitol, for example.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement: “The people who invaded the Capitol on Jan. 6, whether they committed violence or not, should not have been pardoned. They unlawfully broke into the Capitol to stop the peaceful transfer of power. What they did is a serious crime. Donald Trump is ushering in a Golden Age for people that break the law and attempt to overthrow the government.”
What’s Next
Chansley did not speak about his plans for the future during the interview, although he has previously indicated an intent to run for Congress.
