Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s nominee for a 10-year term as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, distanced himself on Thursday from Trump’s sweeping pardon of Jan. 6 rioters, telling the Senate Judiciary Committee he did not think violent rioters who assaulted law enforcement deserved a break.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, insisted to deeply skeptical Democrats on Thursday that he did not have an “enemies list” and that the bureau under his leadership would not seek retribution against the president’s adversaries or launch investigations for political purposes.