Trump Is On A Corrupt Pardoning Spree

Like every wanna-be Dictator, law and order only applies to his enemies.

The most disgusting thing Trump has done since he came back to power is pardoning or dropping the cases of roughly 1,600 J6 insurrectionists who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol.

He followed that up by forcing our government to drop related gun convictions and pay back fines to the convicts.

Now, his official pardon attorney is looking into pardoning Jan. 6 ringleader Stewart Rhodes who was convicted of seditious conspiracy and received an 18-year prison sentence which Trump already commuted. Also up for a full pardon are 10 other domestic terrorists including members of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. All of these men were convicted for the most serious crimes during the attack on our Democracy.

The DOJ pardon attorney Ed Martin has made the case to Trump’s new Pardon Czar Alice Johnson who herself was pardoned by Trump in his first term. She had been serving a life sentence for a non-violent drug crimes for her involvement in a Memphis cocaine trafficking and money laundering organization.

Since she literally owes her life to Trump, it’s pretty clear how this is going to end.

Beyond how disgusting this is on its face, it’s also deeply disturbing for what it portends. There are already unconfirmed rumors that many Proud Boys and Oath Keepers have joined the ranks of ICE — likely doing the dirtier work like grabbing students or smashing windows — videos of which have circulated on social media.

There’s nothing hyperbolic to believe that these extremist and other goons who were told by Trump to stand back and stand by are eager to be put to use.

The most likely scenario would be to stoke violence if mass protests force Trumps hand. It will be then that we get into the zone of Martial Law when all bets are off. I’m not saying that we are certain to get to that point, but we’re closer than we’ve ever been in our 248-year history.

As for state extremists, Trump is also considering pardoning the men who conspired to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer — not surprising since Trump’s own attacks on her during COVID helped inspire their plot.

Not only did the men plan and stake out Whitmer’s vacation house in Elk Raids, but planned to blow up a nearby bridge that would slow down police response. They had bomb-making materials, scores of weaponry and ammunition, and wanted the kidnapping to spark a nationwide revolution. They also discussed additional kidnappings and/or killing other elected officials.

An Army vet who joined the paramilitary group became alarmed at the plans, reported the men to the FBI and became an informant. Other FBI agents infiltrated the group — gathering the evidence used against them in court. Of the 14 men charged nine either were convicted by a jury or pleaded guilty. The longest prison sentences were four, sixteen, and nineteen years.

“I will look at it — take a look at it,” he said when asked if he is considering pardons. “It’s been brought to my attention, I did watch the trial. It looked to me like somewhat of a railroad job, I’ll be honest with you. It looked to me like some people said some stupid things.”

“They were drinking and I think they said stupid things but I’ll take a look at that, and a lot of people are asking me that question from both sides actually,” he continued. “A lot of people think they got railroaded.”

I think we know where this is going too.

It’s not just violent criminals who tried to overthrow the federal government or kill political opponents that Trump is pardoning. If you pay him, kiss his ass, or support his policies there’s a pretty good chance he’ll pardon you for any and all crimes.

Here are a couple more, quotes pulled from various publications:

President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he’s planning to pardon TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, famous for “Chrisley Knows Best,” a reality show that followed their tight-knit family and extravagant lifestyle that prosecutors said was boosted by bank fraud and hiding earnings from tax authorities.

The Chrisleys were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud banks in the Atlanta area out of more than $30 million in loans by submitting false documents. They were also found guilty of tax evasion, obscuring their earnings while showcasing a luxurious way of living that authorities said included high-priced cars, designer clothes, real estate and travel.

The couple have claimed they were targeted because of their conservative beliefs — 100% in Trump’s wheelhouse. Julie Chrisley also spoke at the Republican National Convention last summer, obviously sufficiently kissing his ass in public.

Oh, and there’s more:

Hours before former Culpeper County Sheriff Scott Jenkins was reportedly due to report to federal prison, President Donald Trump said he was pardoning him. A jury found Jenkins guilty back in December in a $75k bribes-for-badges scheme. A judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison. Since his conviction, Jenkins maintained he did nothing wrong and campaigned for Trump’s attention on at least one podcast.

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed a full pardon for former New York Republican Congressman Michael Grimm, who had pleaded guilty to felony tax evasion charges in 2014, a White House official said on Wednesday.

The president pardoned former Connecticut Gov. John Rowland (R), who pleaded guilty in a corruption investigation in 2004 and was later convicted on federal charges in 2014.

Trump also granted pardons to Mark Bashaw, who was convicted in 2022 for refusing to follow COVID-19 rules in the Army.

How about one directly related to helping Trump hide a crime:

Trump commuted the 12-year prison sentence of the lobbyist/donor Imaad Zuberi, who pleaded guilty to obstructing an investigation into the source of a $900k donation he gave to Trump's 2017 inauguration.

And finally, let’s end with a straight up bribe:

President Donald Trump has reportedly pardoned Paul Walczak — who pleaded guilty to tax crimes in November — just one month after his mother, Elizabeth Fago, attended a massive Mar-a-Lago fundraiser dinner for the president.

Trump has hosted several $1 million-per-plate fundraisers at his private club in Florida since his inauguration including one that Fago attended which "promised face-to-face" access with the president, per the Times.

I’ll skip getting into his first term pardons, but his cronies Michael Flynn Paul Manafort, and Roger Stone obviously made the cut.

Harvard Law School's Jack Goldsmith determined that "at least 84 out of 94 Trump pardons had a personal or political connection to the president.”

Have there been controversial pardons by Democratic presidents?

Sure, a few.

But, there’s never been anything close to the depravity of Trump.

Oddly, he has a pretty low number of over-all pardon by historical standards. That sounds counterintuitive, but it’s not. The pardon power is in the Constitution to be a repository of mercy for the Chief Executive — freeing those unjustly convicted or people who have truly paid for their mistakes and have taken the steps to better themselves and be productive members of society again.

Trump doesn’t care about any of that mushy nonsense.

As with anything to do with law and order it’s all corrupt, meant to punish opponents, reward supporters and amass the powers of Dictatorship.