Trump pardons Manafort, Stone and Charles Kushner in latest round
By Brett Samuels - 12/23/20 07:30 PM EST
President Trump on Wednesday pardoned Roger Stone and Paul Manafort, two associates convicted as part of former special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation.
Trump also granted a pardon to Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner.
It marked the second consecutive day Trump pardoned allies and those with White House connections. The announcement came shortly after Trump landed in Palm Beach, Fla., for his winter vacation.
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Stone, a longtime Trump associate, was convicted in November 2019 by a jury in Washington, D.C., of lying to Congress in connection with its separate investigation into Russian interference, witness tampering and obstructing an official proceeding.
Trump commuted Stone's sentence in July days before he was set to report to prison. The full pardon came with a note from press secretary Kayleigh McEnany that stated Stone "was treated very unfairly."
Manafort, who served as the chairman of Trump's 2016 campaign, was convicted in 2018 on bank fraud and tax charges. He was sentenced to more than seven years in prison. Manafort was released to home confinement earlier this year amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Trump issued Manafort a "full and complete pardon," with McEnany arguing that his convictions were "premised on the Russian collusion hoax."
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https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/531540-trump-pardons-stone-manafort-and-jared-kushners-father
