Congressman Andy Biggs’ role in pardoning January 6 capitol rioters has become a point of contention in the Arizona governor’s race.
Biggs’ denial that he called for their pardons came to the forefront at an event in Phoenix Tuesday night.
Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs has turned down an invitation to debate her Republican challenger. Tuesday night, however, they appeared on the same stage, although not at the same time, at a [forum](
sponsored by the Arizona Police Association.
Both candidates answered the same six police-related questions posed by the law enforcement group. The final question was about what each would do to recruit and retain qualified officers.
In her answer, [Hobbs said](
Biggs not only supported a ballot referendum that would have weakened police unions, he supported pardons for the 1,600 people convicted of crimes related to the January 6, 2021 “Stop the Steal” riot at the U.S. Capitol \-- rioters who, in some cases, assaulted police officers:
HOBBS: He voted against giving congressional gold medals to the officers who protected the capitol and he called for pardoning of the January 6th defendants, and called them J6 political prisoners. And when those pardons were issued and those folks were being released, he went to the DC jail and stood with supporters when those folks were being released:
Following the event, Biggs held an impromptu [news conference](
and flatly denied Hobbs’ claims:
BIGGS: Well, what she said is that I stood outside a DC jail to greet J-6ers who'd received a pardon. That's what she said. That is an absolute lie. It is a fabrication. It's about as nutty as I've heard from her this campaign.
REPORTER: Did you support the January 6th protesters?
BIGGS: No, I did not. No.
REPORTER: Did you support the pardon the president gave them?
BIGGS: I never made comment on the pardon. Some of them deserved it, some of them didn't, but that was his decision to make, not mine.
On the last point, there is clear evidence Biggs supported pardons for all J-6 protesters. On November 26, 2024, Biggs’ account on X (formerly Twitter) posted this message:
The J6 lawfare against President Trump was rightfully dismissed yesterday.
— Rep Andy Biggs (@RepAndyBiggsAZ) November 26, 2024
President Trump must pardon all J6 political prisoners on January 20, and Congress must hold accountable the bad actors involved in the sham J6 Committee.
There will be no peace for the wicked.
Was Biggs present outside a D.C. jail as J6 rioters were released? That’s the claim Biggs called “an absolute lie...a fabrication” and “nutty”.
It might be a case of mistaken identity. While this article by NBC Washington says, “Republican Rep. Andy Biggs, Rep. Lauren Boebert and Rep. Chip Roy were outside the jail,” The New York Times reported: “Three Republican members of Congress stopped by — Representatives Eli Crane of Arizona, Chip Roy of Texas and Lauren Boebert of Colorado.”
AZPM did not find photographic evidence for either report. Neither the video posted with the NBC article, nor a search of Getty Images, showed Biggs or Crane as part of the group along with Boebert and Roy outside the jail.
Adding to confusion, the NYT report lists a prisoner named Joseph Biggs as one of the defendants released that day.
