Rep. Dan Goldman Joins Capitol Police Officers, Rep. Swalwell to Condemn Trump’s Pardons for J6 Rioters and GOP’s Complicity During National Police Week

 

 

Washington D.C. – Congressman Dan Goldman today joined January 6th police officers Aquilino Gonell and Daniel Hodges, as well as Congressman Eric Swalwell (CA-14) and other elected officials, to condemn the Republican Party’s complete abandonment of capitol police officers who defended lawmakers and the Capitol Complex on January 6th, 2021 during national Police Week. 

 

“Republicans can’t claim to 'back the blue' while they stand idly by and let Donald Trump pardon violent rioters who beat police officers,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “I’m proud to stand with Officer Gonell and Hodges for Police Week — men who risked their lives to defend our Capitol — and call out the GOP’s cowardice and hypocrisy. Over two years ago, Congress passed a law to honor these heroes with a plaque. It’s still sitting in storage because Republican leadership refuses to act. Until they condemn these pardons and honor these officers, their hollow words of support for law enforcement are meaningless.” 

 

Upon taking office on January 21, 2025, Donald Trump issued a blanket pardon for 1,500 duly convicted January 6th insurrectionists. The same week, Republican Congressman Bilirakis (FL-12) met with Stewart Rhodes, the founder of the far-right extremist group the Oath Keepers, in the Capitol complex to celebrate his pardon. Additionally, Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (CO-04) offered private tours to those who stormed the Capitol building on January 6th. 

 

It has been 792 days since a law Democrats passed in 2022 took effect requiring the House of Representatives to hang a commemorative plaque acknowledging the sacrifice that Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan police officers made defending lawmakers on January 6th, 2021.  

 

Congressman Goldman has continued to push back against Donald Trump’s anti-democratic actions and his efforts to whitewash the violence of January 6th. 

 

This January, Congressman Dan Goldman hosted Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges to condemn Donald Trump’s blanket pardons for roughly 1,500 January 6th insurrectionists convicted of assaulting police officers, seditious conspiracy, and other violent crimes. 

 

Last year, Congressman Goldman introduced a resolution censuring Congresswoman Elise Stefanik for conduct unbecoming of a member of Congress, including referring to the duly convicted insurrectionists as ‘hostages.’ 

 

Last winter, Goldman joined Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08) and Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) in introducing the ‘Preventing Private Paramilitary Activity Act’ to protect citizens from intimidation and mass mobilizations of paramilitary groups. The legislation would federally prohibit those in private paramilitary organizations from conducting activity with firearms.