A former Olympic swimmer has expressed “relief” about President Trump pardoning him, according to a Tuesday report from The Washington Post.
“Waking up this morning, I was like: ‘My gosh. Wow, this is over. I don’t have to check in with my probation officer anymore,’” Klete Keller told the Post on Tuesday. “It’s just such an amazing feeling of relief.”
Former teammates and coaches recognized Keller in video footage of the riots at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He was arrested that month and pleaded guilty to a nonviolent felony charge in May 2021.
On Trump’s first day back in office, he pardoned almost all Jan. 6 defendants, saying about 1,500 “full, complete and unconditional pardons” were given to rioters.
“What they’ve done to these people is outrageous,” Trump said while in the Oval Office.
Trump has faced pushback from Democrats and some Republicans for the pardons.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in a Tuesday post on Threads that Republican members of the lower chamber “are celebrating pardons issued to a bloodthirsty mob that violently assaulted police officers on January 6, 2021.”
“I know my actions really angered and caused hurt to millions of Americans,” Keller told the Post. “I told this to the judge, and I meant it. I acted without thinking. I didn’t pause and take time to reflect.”
The Hill has reached out to the White House.