One of Trump’s longest-serving confederates, Roger Stone, was convicted last November for lying to Congress
Washington, United States:
President Donald Trump commuted the prison sentence of his longtime ally Roger Stone on Friday, protecting the 40-month Republican veteran behind bars.
“Roger Stone is now a free man!” the White House said in a statement a few days before he had to report to a federal prison to start serving his sentence.
Trump’s action immediately brought new charges that the President freely intervenes in the U.S. justice system to help his friends and allies and punish perceived critics and enemies.
Stone, one of Trump’s longest-serving confidants, was convicted last November for lying to Congress, falsifying a witness and obstructing the House’s investigation into whether Trump’s campaign had plotted with Russia for the help win the 2016 election.
The fiery White House statement reiterated Trump’s accusation that special counsel Robert Mueller had investigated an alleged crime that never happened. She argued that Stone should therefore never have been charged in the first place.
“The simple fact is that if the special council had not pursued an absolutely baseless investigation, Mr. Stone would not risk being imprisoned,” he added.
In a statement to the American media, Stone’s attorney Grant Smith said his client was “incredibly honored that President Trump used his impressive and unique power under the United States Constitution for this act of mercy “.
The Trump administration had intervened once to help Stone. After prosecutors recommended a seven- to nine-year jail sentence, Attorney General Bill Barr, accused of having acted as Trump’s personal attorney, intervened and called it excessive.
The four prosecutors in the case left him and a new prosecutor recommended a three to four year prison sentence for Stone.
Stone was Trump’s sixth assistant – who was removed from office last year for abusing his power – to be convicted on charges arising from Mueller’s investigation into Russian electoral interference.
“Two systems of justice”
Critics responded quickly and angrily after Trump commuted Stone’s sentence.
Representative Adam Schiff, the Democrat who led the impeachment campaign against Trump, expressed it bluntly: “With Trump, there are now two justice systems in America: one for Trump’s criminal friends and one for everything. the world.”
Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer criticized “a lawless president who sees the Department of Justice as his personal toy”, while others have accused Republicans of tolerating Trump’s behavior by provoking what they have called a breakdown in the judicial system and the rule of law.
Barr was reprimanded for his ministry’s decision to close the case against Trump’s first national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying about his FBI contact with Russia.
Last month, the administration expelled Geoffrey Berman, a New York prosecutor known to have probed Trump’s allies.
In recent months, the Trump administration has also dismissed or demoted Pentagon inspectors general, intelligence and the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as a senior health official who questioned Trump’s promotion of unproven drug therapies for COVID-19.
State Department Inspector General Steve Linick was removed from office last month after investigating misconduct on Washington’s top diplomat and Trump’s loyal ally, Mike Pompeo.
Over 1,000 former Justice Department officials signed a statement calling for Barr’s resignation following his interference to obtain a lighter sentence for Stone.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
