Trump pledges to immediately free 'January 6 Hostages' from jail if re-elected president

Former President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform Monday that among his first acts as president will be to release convicted and accused Jan. 6 rioters from jail if elected to another term in November.

"My first acts as your next President will be to Close the Border, DRILL, BABY, DRILL, and Free the January 6 Hostages being wrongfully imprisoned!" Trump posted.

More than 1,000 people have been arrested so far in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol in 2021, the same day Trump delivered a National Mall speech calling for his supporters to "fight like hell" against the 2020 presidential election result.

The vast majority have been charged with misdemeanors such as disorderly conduct and unlawful picketing, were served brief sentences and were not held in jail pending trial.

Those who were kept in pretrial detention and received sentences ranging in years were charged with more serious offenses, such as assaulting police officers.

Some of the leaders of the far-right Proud Boys and Oath Keepers were convicted of seditious conspiracy.

The former president has increasingly spoken out against the prosecution of the Jan. 6 defendants, and has previously suggested he would pardon at least some of them.

He has also echoed the rhetoric of far-right lawmakers and activists who have characterized the defendants as "political prisoners."

Trump has also pleaded not guilty to conspiracy charges linked to his actions leading up to, and on, Jan. 6, 2021, when prosecutor Jack Smith contends Trump illegally tried to overturn the 2020 election.

That case is on hold as the Supreme Court decides whether Trump's actions were protected by presidential immunity.