1/ Though presidential pardons & commutations have often generated some controversy, none have done so more than Trump's, who while issuing the fewest since William McKinley has delivered the most corrupt by a wide margin.
It's no surprise he's been using them as bribes.
It's no surprise he's been using them as bribes.
2/ William McKinley delivered just 162 pardons and 50 commutations.
Obama gave 212 and 1715 respectively.
Trump? 27 pardons and 11 commutations. Period.
justice.gov/pardon/clemenc…
Obama gave 212 and 1715 respectively.
Trump? 27 pardons and 11 commutations. Period.
justice.gov/pardon/clemenc…
3/ So far, Trump has granted clemency less frequently than any president in modern history, and the bulk of the ones he's delivered have gone to celebrity causes and/or people long dead or criminals whose crimes Trump sympathizes with and approves of. pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020…
4/ Trump's very first pardon, on August 25, 2017, was of former Sheriff Joe Arpaio, whose barbaric tactics to suppress and terrorize immigrants in Maricopa County, AZ, earned him a contempt of court charge, and should have landed him in prison for life aclu.org/blog/immigrant….
5/ Other pardons include: Kristian Saucier, a former Navy sailor convicted of taking photographs of classified engineering areas of USS Alexandria (SSN-757), a nuclear-powered attack submarine, and argued if Hillary Clinton was not in jail, he shouldn't be npr.org/2018/03/09/592…
6/ Lewis "Scooter" Libby, an aide to former vice president Dick Cheney convicted in connection with the CIA leak scandal that put U.S. agents at risk (apparently Trump doesn't disapprove of ALL leakers). nytimes.com/2018/04/13/us/…
7/ Right-wing troll, provocateur, and self-proclaimed film maker Dinesh D'Souza, who made illegal campaign contributions to a Republican. nytimes.com/2018/05/31/us/…
8/ Dwight Lincoln Hammond, Jr. and Steven Dwight Hammond, Oregon ranchers convicted of arson; Trump supporters held an illegal armed occupation of a wildlife refuge in their support, despite the two rejecting the protesters' assistance. vox.com/2018/7/10/1755…
9/ The protest was due to their sentences being extended due to federal minimum mandatory rules.
While their increased sentence may indeed have been unwarranted, Trump only intervened because of his supporters & chose to ignore dozens of similar cases. newsweek.com/who-are-dwight…
While their increased sentence may indeed have been unwarranted, Trump only intervened because of his supporters & chose to ignore dozens of similar cases. newsweek.com/who-are-dwight…
10/ Former Army First Lieutenant Michael Behenna, convicted of the assault and murder of an Iraqi man, out on parole since 2014 after a court-martial and initial prison sentence. npr.org/2019/05/07/720…
11/ Conrad Black, a former media mogul and long time friend, supporter and biographer of Trump himself, convicted of mail fraud and attempted obstruction of justice in 2007 and deported to Canada in 2014. npr.org/2019/05/16/723…
12/ Pat Nolan, a former GOP lawmaker who pled guilty to soliciting for illegal campaign donations after being caught by the Shrimpscam sting operation by the FBI. latimes.com/politics/la-po…
13/ Former Army Major Mathew L. Golsteyn, charged with murder after killing an unarmed Afghan civilian in Marjah, who he claimed was a bomb maker for the Taliban.
The first of several cases where Trump stepped in before the trial was even complete. taskandpurpose.com/news/trump-gol…
The first of several cases where Trump stepped in before the trial was even complete. taskandpurpose.com/news/trump-gol…
14/ Former Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance, convicted of murdering two Afghans when he ordered his troops to fire on them and then covered it up.
He went on to campaign for Trump. businessinsider.com/clint-lorance-…
He went on to campaign for Trump. businessinsider.com/clint-lorance-…
15/ Former Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher, whose own men testified against him for numerous war crimes. Not actually pardoned, Trump interfered throughout his trial in numerous ways and ordered the Navy to reverse punishment decisions against him. nytimes.com/2019/12/27/us/…
16/ Edward J. DeBartolo Jr., former owner of the San Francisco 49ers, who pled guilty in 1998 to concealing an extortion attempt after bribing former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards to help him obtain a license from the LA gaming board. tampabay.com/sports/bucs/20…
17/ Michael Milken, the infamous "junk bond king", sentenced in 1990 and long since free. washingtonpost.com/business/2020/…
18/ Angela Stanton-King, a right-wing author & television personality sentenced to 2 years in prison for conspiracy in 2007, notorious for her embrace of conspiracy theories like QAnon & failed attempt to win John Lewis' former seat in the 2020 election. ajc.com/news/after-get…
19/ David Hossein Safavian, a Republican former lawyer and long-time associate of lobbyist Jack Abramoff, convinced of obstruction of justice and perjury in the Abramoff scandal. nytimes.com/2020/02/19/us/…
20/ Paul Pogue, founder and executive of McKinney, Texas-based construction company Pogue Construction, convinced of tax fraud.
His family gave massive Donations to Trump. abcnews.go.com/Politics/famil…
His family gave massive Donations to Trump. abcnews.go.com/Politics/famil…
21/ Bernard Kerik, former New York City police commissioner, also convicted eight tax-related felonies in 2010. nytimes.com/2020/02/18/nyr…
22/ Roger Stone, self-proclaimed dirty trickster deeply entangled in thee Russia probe, who again didn't reach the pardon phase.
Convicted of perjury, and likely responsible for far worse, Trump interfered throughout his trial. nytimes.com/2019/11/15/us/…
Convicted of perjury, and likely responsible for far worse, Trump interfered throughout his trial. nytimes.com/2019/11/15/us/…
23/ With his sentencing put off over and over, Bill Barr finally stepped in and ordered the DoJ to ask for a minuscule sentence, prompting the resignation of ALL of the prosecutors in Stone's case. nytimes.com/2020/02/11/us/…
24/ In the end, Trump himself stepped in directly and simply commuted his sentence. cnn.com/2020/07/10/pol…
25/ Most recently, and most blatant, is the pardoning of former General and Trump National Security adviser Michael Flynn, another tied into the Russia probe and other foreign entanglements, and whose case was meddled with ahead of time. nytimes.com/2020/11/25/us/…
26/ Flynn's case is among the most infamous; news of his attempts to cut illegal deals with Turkey before and after Trump's inauguration forced him to resign after just 22 days as Trump's National Security Advisor. nytimes.com/2017/02/13/us/…
27/ Among the deals he had been trying to make included a plot to kidnap a Turkish dissident and fly him to an island prison, for which he would personally collect $15M. theguardian.com/us-news/2017/n…
28/ Flynn early on was said to be cooperating in the Mueller probe, but then backpedaled. The Trump regime and its supporters have long made him out to be a martyr, and he has in return been a vocal Trump supporter. newsweek.com/michael-flynn-…
/29 His was another case, like Stone's, where Barr stepped in, attempting to drop all charges against Flynn before he could be sentenced. The judge in the case refused, and a verdict was coming soon when Trump pardoned him. nytimes.com/2020/11/30/us/…
/30 Between Stone and Flynn, both who continued their poor behavior in outlandish ways throughout their trials, many expect Trump will start a wave of pardons very soon. washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/…
/31 Already there is talk of Rudy Giuliani seeking a pardon... nytimes.com/live/2020/12/0…
/32 ...as well as the possibility of Trump pardoning all three of his eldest children. nytimes.com/2020/12/01/us/…
/33 And, of course, Trump has long bragged that he can pardon himself, a claim that both the Constitution and all reputable legal scholars dismiss as false. nytimes.com/2020/12/02/us/…
/34 Trump preemptively pardoning allies already sits poorly with many, and some are speaking of finding a way to overturn them, though it is unclear if that is possible. What many do note is that a federal pardon does not protect from charges by states. slate.com/news-and-polit…
35/ Rick Gates, Paul Manafort, and George Papadopoulos are among other front runners for coming Trump pardons, and some have speculated even members of congress like Devin Nunes may get them. nytimes.com/2020/11/25/us/…
36/ And now allegations have emerged that Trump has been engaging in a presidential pardon bribery scheme.
We already know that Trump thinks literally everything and anything is for sale, including our military:
We already know that Trump thinks literally everything and anything is for sale, including our military:
https://twitter.com/windthin/status/1143559225165176832
37/ Still, the fact that the Department of Justice has been actively looking into a presidential pardon bribery scheme is a mind-blowing turn of events, especially since they've apparently been doing so for some time now.
bbc.com/news/world-us-…
bbc.com/news/world-us-…
38/ This bombshell was revealed in a partially redacted court filing from the DC district court showing Chief Judge Beryl Howell reviewed an August request from prosecutors to go through documents obtained in a search connected to a bribery investigation. independent.co.uk/news/world/ame…
End?/ There is bound to be a lot more information coming out now that we've had this first initial glimpse of what is happening. Even if Trump tries to bury this, in a few months, Biden will be in and he can't stop it then.
As the reality TV (p)resident would say, stay tuned!
As the reality TV (p)resident would say, stay tuned!
PS: Note that most of the pardons mentioned above went to people long ago released from prison
There was no urgent need to pardon them.
This was Trump expressing clearly that he felt their crimes were okay.
There was no urgent need to pardon them.
This was Trump expressing clearly that he felt their crimes were okay.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
