Donald Trump issues a massive second wave of pardons on Wednesday night which included former campaign manager Paul Manafort, longtime confidante Roger Stone, and Charles Kushner, his son-in-law Jared Kushner's father.
Manafort issued three bootlicking tweets following the pardon, his first tweet in four years: “Mr. President, my family & I humbly thank you for the Presidential Pardon you bestowed on me. Words cannot fully convey how grateful we are. … History will record that your Presidency accomplished more in 4 years than any of your modern-day predecessors. … You truly did ‘Make America Great Again.' God Bless you & your family. I wish you a Merry Christmas & many good wishes for the coming years.”
CNN reports: “The pardons of Manafort and Stone reward two of the most high-profile and widely condemned former advisers of the President, both of whom were indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller, went to trial and were convicted by juries of multiple crimes. … Charles Kushner, meanwhile, had been prosecuted by then-US Attorney for New Jersey Chris Christie in the early 2000s for tax evasion, witness tampering and illegal campaign contributions. He eventually pleaded guilty to 16 counts of tax evasion, one count of retaliating against a federal witness — his brother-in-law — and another count of lying to the Federal Election Commission.”
