A number of leading Republican senators are tripping over themselves trying to hide from questions about Trump’s promise at a recent Texas rally that if he’s elected in 2024 he will pardon the January 6 insurrection defendants.
Senator Susan Collins of Maine, who voted to impeach Trump last year, said she could not rule out supporting him if he ran in 2024.
Here she is from transcripts of’ ABC’s This Week’ on Sunday, 30 January:
Stephanopoulos: Former President [Donald] Trump is out on the campaign trail. He was out in Texas last night suggesting he may pardon those — if he were elected in 2024 — those who were part of the January 6th riots. Given that, can you imagine any circumstances where you could support his election in 2024?
Collins: Well, we’re a long ways from 2024. But let me say this, I do not think the president should have made — that President Trump should have made that pledge to do pardons. We should let the judicial process proceed.
Stephanopoulos: You say we’re a long way away from…
Collins: January 6th was a dark day in our history.
Stephanopoulos: It was. And you voted to convict President Trump as well. Why can’t you rule out supporting him in 2024?
Collins: Well, certainly it’s not likely given the many other qualified candidates that we have that have expressed interest in running. So it’s very unlikely.
Senator John Cornyn of Texas previously declared: “I just think people who broke the law on January the 6th need to be held accountable. Period.”
But when questioned about Trump and the pardons, Cornyn said: “I will support the nominee of my political party.” I assume that means he will support his party’s nominee even if that nominee is a twice impeached former president who is suspected of and being investigated for corporate financial and tax fraud crimes, and currently considered to have committed crimes against the nation (attempting to overturn the presidential election and the 6 January insurrection).
And then there’s Chuck Grassley of Iowa.
When asked to respond to what Trump (actually) said about pardoning the insurrectionists, Grassley, suggesting there is doubt as to Trump’s words, said: ”I can’t speculate on anything.”
There’s nothing to speculate. But Grassley has a history of playing with Trump.
Millionaire Grassley Wants In On Trump’s $12 Billion Farm Bailout
Earlier this year, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) supported Donald Trump’s $12 billion bailout for U.S. farmers – enacted to cover the damage by China’s retaliatory tariffs after Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese imports.
Said Grassley, “the Trump administration had a ‘responsibility to help’”.
Now, the millionaire senator is applying for those same bailout funds for his own 750-acre Iowa farm.
Three years later, in late 2021
At a rally in October 2021, Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa received endorsement for reelection from the former guy.
“I’m thrilled to announce tonight that Senator Chuck Grassley has my complete and total endorsement for reelection”.
Grassley’s response to the endorsement, with TFG standing beside him:
“I was born at night, but not last night. So if I didn’t accept the endorsement of a person that’s got 91% of the Republican voters in Iowa, I wouldn’t be too smart. I’m smart enough to accept that endorsement”.
Note: Farmer Grassley does have a Republican primary challenger – state Senator Jim Carlin, “a Trump-backing, far-right legislator who has echoed Trump’s messaging on elections and other topics since getting into the race”. But Carlin’s campaign has struggled to launch. He’s raised little money and doesn’t have much public backing from key public officials or major activists.