Pardon applications are being carefully crafted with one man in mind: Donald Trump
Source: Associated Press
Pardon applications are being carefully crafted with one man in mind: Donald Trump
By JIM MUSTIAN
Updated 8:32 AM EDT, June 27, 2025
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Scott’s application is hardly unique, according to prisoners, defense attorneys and officials. The White House and the Justice Department have received a wave of such requests — all carefully crafted to capture the attention and fancy of Trump or those who know his inclinations.
The flurry, legal experts said, has been sparked by Trump’s frequent and eyebrow-raising grants of clemency since retaking office in January. The Republican president has pardoned and commuted the sentences of more than 1,600 people, including many political allies, former GOP officeholders and hundreds charged or convicted in the 2021 Capitol riot. He even pardoned a pair of reality TV stars who were serving time for bank fraud and tax evasion.
In doing so, Trump has largely cast aside a process that historically has been overseen by nonpolitical personnel at the Justice Department who spent their days poring over clemency applications — thick packets filled with character references attesting to applicants’ atonement and good deeds. Only those meeting strict criteria were then passed along to the White House.
Those procedures appear to have been replaced by the caprice of a president known for his transactional approach to governance, his loyalty to supporters and his disdain for perceived enemies.
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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/trump-pardons-clemency-felons-campaign-donors-c13bb01491b3d5956ff48572983302fb
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