Standing before the very building at the center of a riotous attack four years earlier that sent many of them to prison, Enrique “Henry” Tarrio of the Proud Boys called out to the small group of Jan. 6 defendants gathered beside him:
“Whose house?” Tarrio asked, turning toward the U.S. Capitol.
“Our house!” they bellowed.
The event, an opportunity for Tarrio and other far-right leaders to amplify their telling of the attack, reflected a stunning reversal of fortunes for nearly 1,600 Capitol riot defendants and far-right leaders granted clemency. The men once firmly seen as fringe figures felt vindicated — even celebrated — in the city that once jailed and prosecuted them.
As Trump has sought to recast the official public narrative about one of the most divisive chapters of recent U.S. history, some of those involved have benefited from their elevated profiles, converting the embrace of his MAGA base into public appearances and podcast interviews while openly mulling government jobs or running for elected office.
In recent days, Tarrio and other far-right leaders who call themselves “J6ers” tested that capital at the sprawling annual Conservative Political Action Conference at National Harbor in Maryland.
“The Boys are back in town,” Tarrio, who was convicted of seditious conspiracy, posted to X, alongside a photo of him with three of his co-defendants. “The Seditious 5 rides again!”
“It feels defiant,” Tarrio said, in an interview, about returning to Washington. “Those three years that were taken from me unjustly were so f—ing worth it. The size of the bullhorn that was given to me is … huge.”
At first, Tarrio said security declined to permit him and others entrance — a charge that prompted online backlash against event organizers. CPAC officials quickly issued a statement insisting they were welcome.
“In fact, CPAC has been a constant supporter of this persecuted community and we support wholeheartedly President Trump’s pardons of the J6 victims,” the organization stated on X.
That message, extremism researchers said, underscores why Tarrio, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and others among the far right feel emboldened to push their agenda. As the conservative movement embraces them, experts fear political violence will be seen as more acceptable in American life.
The Proud Boys, a far-right group with a history of violence, are designated as a terrorist group in Canada and New Zealand.
“We’re going to see more recruitment, more mobilization,” said Cynthia Miller-Idriss, who runs the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab at American University.
Extremism researchers interviewed for this article said they are particularly focused on rhetoric that Trump and other prominent Republicans have used when speaking about immigration as an “invasion.” This kind of language, they say, echoes a false conspiracy theory rooted in the belief that the White race is under threat of extinction at the hands of minorities, which has motivated white-supremacist shootings.
“These folks believe that their agendas are now aligned with the state,” said Freddy Cruz, an extremism researcher and program manager at Western States Center, a pro-democracy watchdog group.
Tarrio has sought to minimize concerns of extremist violence in interviews since his release, saying the only requirement once someone is a Proud Boy is “you go out and drink beer with the boys once a month.” He described experiencing a mainstream culture shift since leaving prison, walking into a “multiverse” where Proud Boys are no longer considered “far right.”
“We’re pretty much right wing,” he said. “What view [do] we have, that Republicans don’t have now?”
Although the Proud Boys seemed to fracture following Tarrio’s release, with those distrustful of him began branding themselves as “autonomous” chapters, a lot of people still stand behind Tarrio, said Heidi Beirich, a longtime hate monitor who co-founded the nonprofit Global Project Against Hate and Extremism. Through the pardons, she said Trump has essentially sanctioned their beliefs and actions.
“A very dangerous organization is going to rise from the dead basically, and has had its slate wiped clean,” Beirich said. “And they’re not going to view themselves as on the fringes, because they really aren’t anymore.”
Tarrio, who lives in Miami, has said in interviews that he is interested in running for a seat similar to that of former congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Florida). Barry Ramey, a Proud Boys member convicted of crimes related to Jan. 6, including spraying officers with pepper spray, said in an interview that he’s been speaking at Republican events. And Jay Kenyon, who was also convicted for crimes related to Jan. 6, traveled to CPAC from his Virginia home in hopes of making connections and finding a job in local government.
“They’re giving us a voice,” Kenyon said of CPAC.
Not all welcome the MAGA recast of Jan. 6, when a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol as lawmakers attempted to certify the 2020 presidential election results. More than 140 officers were wounded in the attack. A female rioter was shot and killed by police inside the Capitol, and one officer succumbed to two strokes that were partly attributed to the stress of the attack. Three people died as a result of medical emergencies suffered during the riot. Four police officers later died by suicide.
Now, “We Stand Up for Justice and Stand Against Hate” is stripped across the Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church homepage in the Proud Boys’ signature black and yellow, with an option to buy their $20 limited edition T-shirts, including one that says, “STAY PROUD STAY BLACK.”
So far, said the Rev. William H. Lamar IV, they have sold 3,200.
A few protesters gathered Friday to heckle Rhodes and Tarrio and other Proud Boys during a news conference as they repeated calls for retribution and insisted that Jan. 6 prosecutions were politically motivated. There, Tarrio announced plans to file a lawsuit against the Justice Department with fellow Proud Boys joining him as plaintiffs; Rhodes said he would be filing a separate lawsuit. Later that day, U.S. Capitol Police arrested Tarrio for simple assault following what police said was an exchange with one of the protesters.
At CPAC, attendees had the option of attending a panel entitled “The J6 Sham,” featuring Steven Sund, who was the Capitol Police chief during the Capitol riot. He repeated past criticisms, blaming other agencies for failing to share pertinent security intelligence in the lead-up to the attack or provide additional resources during it.
People who had received presidential pardons for their role in the attack roamed the hallways, congregated by a “January 6th Legal Fund” booth and networked for business opportunities. Several treated the day like a family reunion.
Kenyon, 47, of Virginia, brought a stack of résumés, looking for help in the crowd. He had lost his job after an employer learned of his involvement that day; he was found guilty of civil disorder, a felony, and four misdemeanor offenses on Jan. 6, when court records show he entered the Rotunda, Statutory Hall, and the House Wing.
When people ask him why he’s there, he responds: “I’m a J6er.” He added: “I’ve yet to find someone who hasn’t been supportive of it.”
Kirstyn Niemela, who also was convicted of crimes related to entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, said she’s been asked to speak on podcasts, radio and at some local New Hampshire events at wineries. She said she was staying with other Jan. 6 defendants in a Virginia Airbnb they’ve deemed “Patriot Mansion.”
“January 6 changed my life,” Niemela, 36, said. “Normally, I’d be nervous or anxious or shy around new people, but it’s kind of like a family, all of us.”
Christopher Quaglin, 39, who was found guilty of several Jan. 6 charges including assaulting police, said he plans to drive across the country and thought CPAC was a great place to start. The goal this past week, he said, was “networking and interviews” to talk about his three-month road trip and his newfound passion of reforming the justice system.
He attached a red ID from his time in federal prison to his shirt. That way, anyone talking to him would see it.
