A former January 6 rioter who compared Capitol police officers to “Nazis” and the “Gestapo” has been fired by the Department of Justice, according to media reports.
Jared Wise, who was pardoned by President Donald Trump earlier this year, has been working as an advisor to the DOJ for about a month. On Wednesday, it was reported that he’s been hired to work on the Weaponization of Government Taskforce, which is under the authority of Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump’s former defense attorney.
News that Wise had been hired full-time by the department shocked analysts on CNN’s “NewsNight with Abby Phillip” on August 7.
I think it’s horrific that the DOJ has now hired a guy who was yelling about killing cops,” said Dan Abrams, founder of Mediaite. “I think that is an outrage! I think that is a scandal.”
Wise was arrested as part of the sweeping investigation into the January 6 riot. NPR obtained footage of him at the Capitol screaming at the crowd to “kill them,” referring to the police officers protecting the building.
Wise’s case was later thrown out because Trump pardoned all January 6 defendants.
Media reports indicate it is unclear what role Wise will play at the DOJ, but he does have a senior advisory title.
“Jared Wise is a valued member of the Justice Department, and we appreciate his contributions to our team,” the DOJ told NPR in a statement.
Phil Williams, a right-wing podcast host, agreed with Abrams that hiring Wise was a bad idea for the DOJ. Williams argued that it could lead to rank-and-file officers starting to leave the department because of Wise’s previous comments.
“The DOJ needs to re-examine their (sic) hiring policies,” Williams said.