Trump pardons 15 people, including 4 Blackwater employees involved in the killing of Iraqi civilians | Iraq_Sina Finance_Sina.com

Original caption: Trump pardons 15 people, including 4 Blackwater employees involved in the killing of Iraqi civilians

(Observer Network News) Before leaving office, the current president of the United States, Trump, will use his power to forgive someone who has always been a concern of the outside world.

The White House website issued a press release on December 22, announcing that Trump pardoned 15 people on the same day and reduced some or all of the sentences of another 5 people. Among those pardoned were 2 former campaign consultants who pleaded guilty in “Tong-Rumen”, 4 Blackwater contractors who killed Iraqi civilians and 2 former Republican members of Congress. Another former Republican congressman involved in money laundering and fraud was exempted from the remaining sentence.

The New York Times believes this is Trump’s “new round of bold pardons” before Christmas, and this may be the start of more initiatives before he leaves office.

Among these 20 people, the US media is most concerned about the two former Trump campaign members involved in the “Tong-Russia” probe. One of them is named George Papadopoulos (George Papadopoulos), a former Trump campaign consultant.

In 2017, he admitted in the Trump “Russia Gate” investigation that he had lied to FBI agents about the timing and importance of contacts with senior Russian officials. Therefore, Robert Mueller, the “Tong-Rumen” special prosecutor at the time, believed that Papadopoulos caused damage to the “Tong-Rumen” investigation.

In the end, Papadopoulos was sentenced to 14 days in prison, 12 days in federal prison, and 12 months of supervised release.

The other person Trump pardoned was Alex van der Zwaan, a former diplomatic adviser to the campaign team. He was also sentenced to 30 days in prison and a fine of US $ 20,000 for lying to investigators in the “Tong-Rumen” investigation.

The New York Times cited Trump’s close knowledge that the pardon related to the Mueller investigation was a “sign” that more will happen to those involved in the investigation in the future.

On the 25th of last month, Trump also pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Flynn admitted in the 2017 “Tong-Russia” investigation that he had twice lied to FBI agents during a conversation with then-Russian ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak. But in January of this year, Flynn suddenly requested the withdrawal of the plea deal.

In addition to the two campaign advisers, three former Republican congressmen are also the focus of external attention. These three people are former California Representative Duncan Hunter (Duncan Hunter), New York State Representative Chris Collins (Chris Collins) and Texas State Representative Steve Stockman (Steve Stockman).

Hunter pleaded guilty to a campaign fund embezzlement charge in 2019 and was sentenced to 11 months. He was originally due to begin serving his sentence next month. Collins is one of Trump’s early supporters. He admitted to the FBI in 2019 to making false statements and conspiracy to commit securities fraud charges, and is currently serving a 26-month sentence. In 2018, Stockman was sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of fraud and money laundering. He is currently serving his sentence. Trump has reduced his remaining sentence this time.

Trump’s pardons list also includes four American veterans. In 2007, these people were accused of participating in a massacre of civilians in Iraq when they were employees of the Blackwater Company.

The White House pardon manuscript stated that these four people’s pardons received “broad support” from the public. In 2007, these four people worked as security contractors in Iraq and were responsible for ensuring the safety of Americans. When the convoy tried to establish a blockade outside the “Green Zone”, the situation turned violent, causing “tragic deaths and injuries” of Iraqi civilians. The initial charges against these individuals were dropped, but they were ultimately tried on charges ranging from first degree murder to intentional murder.

The New York Times reported that the Justice Department spared no effort to prosecute one of Blackwater’s contractors named Nicholas Slaterton. He once killed 17 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad’s Nissur Square. Among the dead were 10 men, 2 women and 2 children, ages 8 and 11. This is also “one of the most persistent stains” in American war history. In the end, he was sentenced to life in prison.

　　MicrosoftMSNBC host Moshilding is there tooTwitterHe noted that Slaterton was accused of killing 14 Iraqi civilians (named 17 by the New York Times).

In addition to the aforementioned personnel, Trump also this time pardoned two former Border Patrol agents, who were convicted of shooting and killing a drug trafficker.

The power of clemency comes from the United States Constitution and is one of the broadest powers enjoyed by the President of the United States. Under the United States Constitution, other government agencies cannot review pardons, and the president does not need to give reasons for issuing pardons. The form of forgiveness includes the removal of a specific person’s criminal conviction, or a reduced sentence on the basis of retaining original sin. A Reuters article in November analyzed that Trump has the power to forgive his family, but there is no precedent for forgiving the president himself.

CNN previously quoted a source as saying the power of the presidential pardon was a topic of discussion prior to Trump’s departure.

“The New York Times” believes this is unlikely to be the last time Trump left office. This pardon will certainly contribute to the claim that Trump is “aggressively” using pardons for personal and political ends.

Statistics from Harvard Law School Professor Jack Goldsmith (Jack Goldsmith) say that, as of Tuesday, Trump approved the 45 pardons or sentence reductions, 88% of people have helped people who have a personal relationship with the president, or benefit His political goals.

Editor in Charge: Wang Yongsheng