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Trump’s ‘dirty trickster’ pal Roger Stone thanks ‘brave’ President for pardoning him and 28 others
ROGER Stone thanked President Donald Trump for pardoning him along with 28 others – claiming it took "courage" to clear his record.
Stone, , and father, were among multiple pardons and three commutations from , bringing the total number of people .
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Stone, who calls himself the “dirty trickster”, told : "I have an enormous debt of gratitude to God Almighty for giving the president the strength and the courage to recognize that my prosecution was a completely politically-motivated witch hunt."
Trump also pardoned Manafort, his former campaign chairman, and Stone, his longtime informal adviser, on Wednesday.
by The New York Times, both men refused to cooperate with prosecutors in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.
Manafort lied to prosecutors after initially agreeing to cooperate with Mueller, and served nearly two years in prison for , witness tampering conspiracies, and illegal foreign lobbying.
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Meanwhile, Stone lied to to protect Trump and did not cooperate in Mueller’s probe.
for obstruction of Congress and threatening a witness.
Trump also pardoned Charles Kushner, who in the early 2000s was prosecuted by for tax evasion, illegal campaign contributions, and witness tampering.
s father pleaded guilty to 16 counts of tax evasion, one count of lying to the Federal Election Commission, and one count of retaliating against his brother-in-law who was a federal witness.
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Trump and the elder Kushner got to know each other personally when their children, Jared and , got married in 2009, as well as from working in real estate.
announced Trump’s 26 pardons and three commutations as Trump flew with to his Mar-a-Lago resort in , for the Christmas holiday.
Trump’s list of pardons also included Margaret Hunter, the estranged wife of former Representative Duncan Hunter.
Margaret Hunter – – pleaded guilty to “knowingly and willingly” conspiring to use campaign funds for personal purposes.
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The list of pardons included more than 20 lower-profile individuals who pleaded guilty to mail fraud, firearm possession, and .
Trump’s actions display his inclination to use his presidential powers to override prosecutors, courts, and juries in order to aid his allies.
With the new pardons for Manafort and Stone, Trump has granted clemency to four individuals convicted in the Russia investigation, including former national security adviser and campaign advisor George Papadopoulos, who admitted to lying to the .
Former Republican Representatives Chris Collins, of , and Steve Stockman, of , were also pardoned.
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Trump also pardoned Alex van der Zwaan, a Dutch lawyer who was sentenced to 30 days in prison for lying to investigators during Mueller’s investigation.
It was also announced on Tuesday night that – convicted in a 2007 massacre in .
Manafort thanked Trump in a series of tweets on Wednesday night.
“Words cannot fully convey how grateful we are,” Manafort , speaking for himself and his family.
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“History will record that your Presidency accomplished more in 4 years than any of your modern-day predecessors.”
Since Trump lost the election to Joe Biden, .
that those up for included and , along with , Eric, and .
Others touted for Trump to pardon reportedly include , 's former campaign manager Paul Manafort, and former adviser , according to a report.
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There's even speculation that .
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It's not unusual for presidents to grant clemency on their way out of .
However, Trump has made it clear that he has no issues about intervening in the cases of friends and allies whom he believes have been treated unfairly.
Trump rails against 'theft of the election' for Biden in latest bid to cling to power
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