Political Poison: Trump's January 6 pardons betray American values

In this issue of FrameLab: First, a short piece (4 minutes) about the need to weaponize Trump's unpopular pardons of the January 6 insurrectionists. Second, a new ad highlighting how mass deportations will harm American families. Third, an update on the FrameLab Book Club.

Why Trump's horrible pardons could haunt him

Donald Trump’s decision to pardon those convicted of attacking the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, is highly unpopular with Americans.

Recent polls show that the J6 pardons are political poison. A majority of Americans – including Republicans – oppose them. They are a potent issue to use against Trump, who starts his new term with a low approval rating.

From a poll conducted by Protect Democracy United/YouGov polling:

75% of Americans oppose pardons for those convicted of using a deadly or dangerous weapon at the Capitol, including 55% of Republicans. 

73% of Americans oppose pardons for those convicted of assaulting Capitol Police officers, including 54% of Republicans.

56% of Americans oppose pardons for those convicted of organizing and directing violence on January 6.

55% of Americans oppose pardons for those convicted of crimes by a federal court.

54% of Americans agree that pardoning people who took part in political violence will encourage more of the same.

A separate poll conducted by Reuters/Ipsos found that 58% of Americans believe that “Trump should not pardon all people convicted of crimes during the January 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.”

These are sizeable majorities. Trump took a considerable political risk by carrying out these pardons within hours of his inauguration. He is hoping that Americans, overwhelmed by his constant onslaught of actions, will quickly forget about these morally reprehensible and unpopular pardons.

But holding leaders accountable is crucial. This is especially true when their actions are highly unpopular. Political operatives often tie politicians to unpopular issues even when they play no role in creating them. For example, Republicans blamed President Joe Biden for the high price of eggs even though the bird flu caused those price surges (which continue to occur under Trump). More recently, Republicans have tried to blame the disastrous wildfires in Los Angeles County on Gov. Gavin Newsom in a nakedly transparent effort to direct negative public sentiment at a Democratic opponent.

In this case, Trump is directly responsible for the unpopular issue. He created the January 6 insurrection by lying about the 2020 election. After the insurrection failed, he called it a “heinous attack” and sought to distance himself from it. In 2024, he changed his tune and said he would free those convicted of participating in the “heinous” insurrection. In 2025, he pardoned the J6 attackers despite big a majority of Americans opposing this action.

This is a perfect and necessary opportunity to hammer Trump’s shaky approval rating (47%, according to the Reuters/Ipsos poll).

Here’s some sample language that frames the debate around core American values:

The violent January 6 insurrection at the United States Capitol was an attack on our entire nation. The rioters assaulted and injured police officers and tried to hunt down our elected leaders. The January 6 attack desecrated the U.S. Capitol, the sacred center of our democracy. Trump’s decision to pardon the January 6 attackers is a morally wrong betrayal of American values. The vast majority of Americans – over 70% – oppose Trump’s decision to pardon the violent January 6 attackers. We must hold Trump accountable for his actions, which amount to another attack on democracy, law, and the police officers who bravely protected our country from an attempted coup. In contrast, Trump’s pardons will only encourage further political violence.

The language above uses polling insights to create one paragraph that casts the pardons as an affront to American values.

Here are some of the key frames in the conversation over Trump’s heinous pardons:

• Betrayal of Police Officers. Polling shows 73% of Americans oppose pardoning those who attacked Capitol police officers. This frame is effective with Democrats, but it’s especially powerful with most Republicans. This frame triggers the deep-seated conservative value of supporting law enforcement (no matter what!) – while highlighting the moral violation of pardoning their attackers. The Capitol Police are a different kind of police force. Their job is to protect the U.S. Capitol, and they were the “thin blue line” between American democracy and Trump attempted coup. Sample phrase: “Donald Trump betrayed our police officers by pardoning those who violently attacked them. Standing with our Capitol Police means standing against pardons for their attackers.”
• Sacred Spaces Under Siege. The Capitol isn’t just a building – it’s a temple of American freedom and democracy. This metaphorical framing activates both the conservative and progressive moral foundations of sanctity and the shared American value of democratic tradition. 75% opposition to pardoning violent actors shows this frame’s potency. Sample phrase: “Our Capitol is sacred ground, not a battleground for violent coup attempts.”
• Betrayal of Law and Order. Trump’s pardons contradict the frame of Law and Order, which Republicans typically try to use as a weapon against Democrats. Trump campaigned on law and order, but his first action was to free convicted criminals who launched a violent attack on the government. Even a majority of Republicans oppose this! Sample phrase: “You can’t defend law and order while pardoning violent criminals.”
• A Majority of Americans Oppose. A few weeks ago, I wrote about the power of social proof. People often take their cues from what other people think. When a large majority of Americans oppose something, this can be very persuasive to those are are undecided or don’t know what to think. In this case, social proof works against Trump. Emphasize the broad consensus: military veterans, Republicans, and Democrats agree in their opposition to pardons for these offenders. A bipartisan majority – Over 75% – believe Trump is wrong to pardon those who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol. Sample phrase: “A majority of Americans stand united: Trump’s pardons betray American values.”

Nothing will affect Trump’s most loyal supporters, but they are not the target audience. The main audience here is swing voters who may have some conservative political leanings but see core American values actively violated by Trump’s actions. The goal is to hold Trump accountable, accelerate swing voter regret, and sink his approval numbers even further by hammering on his grave error in granting these ill-conceived pardons. This will weaken him politically and hamper his ability to carry out his authoritarian project.

Ideally, a functioning opposition party would already be filling the airwaves with short, powerful ads playing up this issue, and Democratic leaders would highlight them non-stop. Imagine what Republicans would be doing if the shoe was on the other foot. They would focus relentlessly on these morally corrupt and highly unpopular pardons.We must frame the issue with moral clarity and repeat it at every turn to ensure it doesn’t fade away.

In politics, it is important to frame a positive moral vision. But it's equally important to exploit the opposition's vulnerabilities and use negative framing to our advantage when necessary. The 2026 elections will be here sooner than we think, and we must make sure Trump and Republicans are held accountable for their dangerous and unpopular actions.

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Mass Deportations = Higher Prices, Less Food

In a recent post, I wrote about how American attitudes on immigration shift when Americans understand the effect mass deportations will have on food prices.

CNN reports that “agriculture executives, farm industry officials and economists tell CNN that if Trump keeps his deportation promises, groceries will get more expensive — perhaps much more expensive.” So while polls may show that Americans favor Trump's immigration policies, that's only because they aren't being told how mass deportations will disrupt their own lives.

Here's a 40 second ad I wrote to highlight this issue:

Get ready for food prices to skyrocket in 2025! 

If Trump deports immigrant workers, prices go up.

Because our food system depends on immigrant workers. They keep our grocery shelves stocked and put affordable food on our tables.

American farmers are raising the alarm: Without immigrants, there will be less food. And everything gets more expensive!

Hardworking immigrants feed our nation. 

So when the deportations start and food prices rise, remember:
This is the tax we pay for stupid immigration policies that hurt immigrant workers AND American families.

Here's a video version created by a loyal FrameLab reader:

Here's a link to the video on YouTube, which is shareable and features closed captioning. Please share widely!

FrameLab Book Club

We will reschedule the online FrameLab book club meeting for mid-February (after technical difficulties halted the first meeting). This weekend, we will record a new episode of the FrameLab podcast in which we answer the questions we weren't able to address.

For next week, we will be taking questions on Chapter 3 of The Political Mind. Please keep your questions to the issues covered in this chapter – we will be focusing on those questions, not general Q&A. Here's how to send in your questions:

• Leave your question in the comments on this post. (Note: You may need to log in to FrameLab to do this. Go to the FrameLab homepage, click "log in" in the top right corner and follow the instructions.)Email your questions to me: gil@theframelab.org, Or.
• Enter your question on this Google Doc.
• Post your question on social media. Jason Sattler (LOLGOP) has posted an open thread on BlueSky where you can post a question. Dr. Lakoff's Facebook page has an open thread where FrameLab book club members can post questions. If you prefer Twitter (X), you can tweet questions to me, @gilduran76, or...
• If you prefer to send a text or voice message, the FrameLab hotline is 415-475-9644.