The recent full pardons President Donald Trump has been giving out have raised some burning questions because two of the people he granted a pardon to were celebrities. Hence, many were wondering if Sean “Diddy” Combs was actually on Trump’s periphery or in consideration for a full pardon, seeing as the rapper is in trouble and his close friend, Kanye, is a full-fledged Trump supporter. Well, Trump has finally spoken up on the matter.
Donald Trump recently held an Oval Office interview, answering many questions, and one of them pertained to Diddy and a possible pardon for the rapper. One of the reporters mentioned that Trump said in the past that Diddy was a good friend of his, hence the query.
Trump’s answer was not exactly definitive, though he didn’t exactly dismiss the idea of granting a pardon to Diddy, and it’s easy to interpret what he said as something he’ll consider.
“I know people are thinking about it. First of all, I’d look at what’s happening. I haven’t been watching it too closely, although it’s certainly getting a lot of coverage. I haven’t seen him– I haven’t spoken to him in years. He used to really like me a lot [but] I think when I ran for politics, that relationship sort of busted up from what I read– he didn’t tell me that…
I would certainly look at the facts. If I think somebody was mistreated, whether they like me or don’t like me, it wouldn’t have any impact,” says President Donald Trump, interview video courtesy of NBC New York.
It appears the President is also considering what stance to take on the matter since Diddy’s trial is still ongoing, and so far, the rap mogul has pleaded not guilty to charges of sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution. Even so, Donald Trump hasn’t exactly dismissed the possibility of granting a pardon to Diddy. So the executive clemency could be up in the air for all we know.
Meanwhile, Trump has granted pardons for hundreds of individuals ever since he became the President. Many of these pardons were for celebrities such as Todd and Julie Chrisley, NBA YoungBoy, Rod Blagojevich, Jay Johnston, Lil Wayne, and Kodak Black. The President is certainly no stranger to granting executive clemencies to convicted criminals.
Do people already know what to expect?
For the record, Trump and Diddy were notably seen together toward the end of the 1990s and early 2000s, and he even attended the rap mogul’s birthday party at one point. In 2020, however, Diddy openly criticized Trump’s policies, especially against Black Americans, even going as far as supporting Joe Biden.
Thus, plenty of eyebrows have certainly raised from Trump’s answer to the reporters’ question. Some have brazenly accused the President of waiting for a possible bribe from Sean “Diddy” Combs, though such claims are rather rash.
Many, however, are worried that the whole “presidential pardon” system is being abused in favor of protecting the Trump administration’s allies, regardless of how deserving or guilty they are. Hence, other critics are of the opinion that executive clemencies should be overhauled so that justice courts can actually do the duties they’re made for, instead of being useless since one person can overturn them anyway.
“And with facts he means how much the bribe is,” suggests majestic7
“Why is this piece of s*** president pardoning the worst humans who deserve jail time?” says Dapper-Top-6779
“Presidential pardons need to be overhauled (among other things) if and when you get a law abiding president again,” argues monogramchecklist
