Jacob Chansley, the man known as the “QAnon Shaman,” said in an interview released Thursday that he’s “wounded” that former President Trump did not pardon those who participated in the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Mr. Chansley, the horn-helmeted, face-painted, shirtless rioter, told “60 Minutes+” reporter Laurie Segall that Mr. Trump should have pardoned the rioters.
“I honestly believed and still believe that [Mr. Trump] cares about the Constitution, that he cares about the American people, and that’s also why and you know it wounded me so deeply and why it disappointed me so greatly that I and others did not get a pardon,” Mr. Chansley said.
Federal prosecutors have charged Mr. Chansley with knowingly entered a restricted building without lawful authority and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. He was transferred to a jail in Alexandria, Virginia, after refusing to eat food at a Washington detention center because it was not organic.
Mr. Chansley had requested a pardon from Mr. Trump, but it was not granted. Before leaving office, Mr. Trump issued a slew of pardons for former associates and others, but did not pardon any Capitol rioters.
Still, Mr. Chansely says he remains loyal to the former president.
“I developed a lot of sympathy for Donald Trump because it seemed like the media was picking on him and seemed like the establishment was going after him unnecessarily or unfairly, and I had been a victim of that all of my life, whether it be in school or at home. So in many ways I identify with a lot of the negative things that he was going through,” he said in the interview.
He also disputed prosecutors’ claims that he committed a crime during the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Court filings are “inaccurate entirely,” Mr. Chansley said.
Prosecutors say he brandished a spear attached to the flagpole as a weapon and left a note threatening Vice President Mike Pence.
“My actions on Jan. 6. How would I describe them? Well, I sang a song,” Mr. Chansley said. “I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space. OK, I actually stopped somebody from stealing muffins out of the break room.”
“I consider myself a lover of my country,” he added. “I consider myself a believer in the Constitution. I consider myself a believer in truth and our founding principles. I consider myself a believer in God.”
Mr. Chansley’s attorneys have sought his release from jail ahead of his trial, but prosecutors insist he’s a danger to the community if released.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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