Trump forgives other confidants – watson

Stone, Manafort and Kushner: Trump forgives other confidants

Shortly before the end of his term, the president-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, pardoned other loyal colleagues. Among them was the former president of his campaign team, Paul Manafortand his lifelong confidant Roger stone. Between the total 26 pardons announced by the White House Wednesday night (local time) he was also the real estate entrepreneur Charles Kushner, the father of Trump’s counselor and son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Trump had only announced a series of controversial pardons on Tuesday.

Manafort had been sentenced to several years in prison for tax evasion and bank fraud. Trump had already issued a prison sentence in July for Stone, who was convicted of Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. Stone was sentenced to more than three years in prison in February for, among other things, false testimony and obstruction of justice. KUshner, for his part, ended up in prison for two years, among other things for tax evasion.. He has served his sentence, but with the pardon his criminal record is subsequently erased.

Republican Trump was defeated by Democrat Joe Biden in the November 3 election, but he will remain president with full powers until January 20. Former presidents like Democrats Bill Clinton and Barack Obama also used the right to grant pardons until their last days in office. At that time, too, there were always controversial cases; however, they were not persons who had been convicted of crimes that were directly related to the president or his electoral campaign.

Until Tuesday, Trump pardoned his former campaign adviser George Papadopoulos. As a result of the Russia investigation, he was sentenced to two weeks in prison for perjury to the FBI of the Federal Police. He also pardoned another person who had been convicted in connection with the Mueller investigation, Alex van der Zwaan. By the end of November, Trump had already pardoned his former National Security adviser Michael Flynn. Flynn had only been a security adviser at the White House for just over three weeks in 2017. He later admitted in the course of the investigation into the Russia affair that he had lied to the FBI.

Trump always condemned the Russia investigation as a “witch hunt.” Special investigator Mueller investigated whether there were agreements between the Trump camp and Russia in the 2016 election campaign.

There is also constant speculation in the American media about whether Trump might finally forgive himself for crimes under federal law as a precaution. It is controversial among constitutional lawyers whether the president’s pardon would be sufficient; in any case, Trump would take an unprecedented step. There are also rumors that Trump is said to have talked to advisers about a pardon for his three oldest children, Donald Trump Junior, Eric and Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. (sda / dpa)