Roger Stone admits the Trump pardon plan

President Trump granted a full pardon Thursday to conservative commentator Dinesh D’Souza and said he was strongly considering clemency for other celebrity felons, signaling his willingness to exercise his unilateral power to reward friends and allies while undercutting the work of his nemeses in law enforcement.

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Roger Stone, a longtime Trump associate and his former political strategist, who has come under scrutiny by Mueller’s team, said the president sent a clear message.

“It has to be a signal to Mike Flynn and Paul Manafort and even Robert S. Mueller III: Indict people for crimes that don’t pertain to Russian collusion and this is what could happen,” Stone said. “The special counsel has awesome powers, as you know, but the president has even more awesome powers.”

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D’Souza, Blagojevich and Stewart had been convicted of such crimes as campaign-finance violations or lying to investigators — charges similar to those brought against Flynn, former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and other Trump associates indicted in special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s Russia investigation. Cohen, meanwhile, is under investigation by federal prosecutors in New York for possible campaign-finance violations and other possible crimes.

Another pattern in Trump’s granted or potential pardons is their connection to the president’s perceived enemies. Former FBI director James B. Comey, whom Trump fired last year, prosecuted Stewart in her insider-trading case, while Comey’s close friend, former U.S. attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald, prosecuted Blagojevich. Former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara — who, like Comey, was fired by Trump and has since been an outspoken critic — prosecuted D’Souza.

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Trump’s pardon of D’Souza was his sixth act of clemency as president. Each was issued unilaterally, subverting the traditional Justice Department process of reviewing thousands of pardon requests.

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D’Souza is an author, filmmaker and provocateur who became a cult figure on the right in part because of his conspiratorial polemics about Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. He pleaded guilty in 2014 to illegally using straw donors to contribute to a New York Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, telling a judge that he knows what he did was “wrong” and “I deeply regret my conduct.”

  WaPo

Which isn't what he's saying now.

D’Souza tweeted that he was grateful to Trump for his pardon and said of his prosecution, “Bharara & his goons bludgeoned me into the plea.”

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Earlier this spring, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) brought up D’Souza’s situation to Trump and personally lobbied him to consider a pardon, according to White House officials.

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Trump, however, told reporters that “nobody asked me to do it” and claimed that he had never met D’Souza, although he said he has seen him on television.

“I called him last night, first time I’ve ever spoken to him,” Trump said. “I said, ‘I’m pardoning you.’ ” He added that D’Souza “almost had a heart attack” during their three-minute phone call.

But Sam Nunberg, Trump’s former political aide, recalled that D’Souza visited Trump at Trump Tower in New York in 2012, shortly before releasing his film, “2016: Obama’s America,” which was based on his earlier book, “The Roots of Obama’s Rage.”

Nunberg said that Trump agreed to help D’Souza promote the film. Trump sent three tweets about D’Souza’s movie that August, including one calling it an “amazing film.”

A White House spokesman said he could not immediately square the conflicting accounts of whether Trump had previously met D’Souza.

They must be running out of steam at the White House trying to square conflicting accounts.

Trump also signaled Thursday that he is considering commuting the remainder of the sentence of Blagojevich, who was convicted in 2010 on charges relating to the attempted sale of Obama’s former U.S. Senate seat.

“What he did does not justify 18 years in a jail,” Trump told reporters traveling on Air Force One. “If you read his statement, it was a foolish statement, there was a lot of bravado. But . . . plenty of other politicians have said a lot worse. And . . . he shouldn’t have been put in jail.”

Trump overstated the duration of Blagojevich’s prison sentence, which is 14 years.

Another example of his need to lie whether it advances his argument or not. Why would 18 sound so much worse than 14?

Trump also cited the case of Stewart, who was convicted in 2004 of obstructing justice and lying to investigators about a well-timed stock sale.

“I think to a certain extent Martha Stewart was harshly and unfairly treated,” Trump said. “And she used to be my biggest fan in the world . . . before I became a politician. But that’s okay. I don’t view it that way.”

Another example of his need to make everything about himself.

A senior White House official said that as many as a dozen other pardons are under consideration by Trump, adding that most are likely to happen. “There are going to be more,” said the official.

I have no doubt. One of his most pressing needs after self-aggrandizement is to thwart the law and exercise power over other people.

Trump has used his clemency powers in a more haphazard way, spurred by personal connections or political calculations. Most of the pardons are impulsive, according to a person familiar with the process, and are driven by his “seeing something on TV, reading something in a newspaper, hearing from a friend or someone lobbying him personally.” The president then usually asks White House lawyers to review the cases and prepare actions.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.