Maddow Blog-Trump to reward celebrity tax cheats with a pardon, adding to scandalous list

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Last edited Wed May 28, 2025, 07:14 PM - Edit history (1)

The president's list of controversial pardons was scandalous long before this week, but his abuses reached a new level over the last few days.

When it comes to Trump’s pardons, it’s worth marveling at the brazenness. The pretense of propriety is gone.

He’s corrupting the pardon process; he knows that he’s corrupting the pardon process; he knows that we know that he’s corrupting the pardon process; and he’s doing it anyway.

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-05-28T12:57:43.247Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-reward-celebrity-tax-cheats-pardon-adding-scandalous-list-rcna209398

Donald Trump’s list of controversial pardons was scandalous long before this week, but the president’s abuses reached a new level over the last few days.

On Monday afternoon, for example, Trump pardoned former Culpeper County Sheriff Scott Jenkins, despite a jury verdict that the Virginia Republican accepted over $75,000 in bribes in exchange for deputy badges for wealthy local businessmen, who would use their status to get out of traffic tickets or carry concealed firearms.....

Hours after the Times published its striking report, the list managed to get even worse. NBC News reported:

President Donald Trump called two of the children of imprisoned reality television couple Todd and Julie Chrisley from the Oval Office on Tuesday, informing them of his plans to pardon their parents as soon as Wednesday. The pair, known for their roles on the TV show “Chrisley Knows Best,” sought pardons from Trump in February after they were convicted of bilking banks out of tens of millions of dollars in 2022, NBC News reported.

By all accounts, the evidence assembled by prosecutors was quite strong, and a jury in Georgia found the television personalities guilty of fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States following a weekslong federal trial......

Hours after the Times published its striking report, the list managed to get even worse. NBC News reported:

President Donald Trump called two of the children of imprisoned reality television couple Todd and Julie Chrisley from the Oval Office on Tuesday, informing them of his plans to pardon their parents as soon as Wednesday. The pair, known for their roles on the TV show “Chrisley Knows Best,” sought pardons from Trump in February after they were convicted of bilking banks out of tens of millions of dollars in 2022, NBC News reported.

By all accounts, the evidence assembled by prosecutors was quite strong, and a jury in Georgia found the television personalities guilty of fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States following a weekslong federal trial.