Trump ‘seriously considering’ pardoning music mogul

Donald Trump is “seriously considering” a pardon for Sean “Diddy” Combs as the shamed rapper awaits sentencing. Knewz.com can reveal the President, 79, has been mulling over the reprieve and according to insiders, the idea had progressed from “just another Trump weave to an actionable event.” It comes as Combs’ defense attorneys filed a motion requesting the Bad Boy Records founder’s release, outlining the terms for his bail, including a $50million bond and travel restrictions

The 55-year-old mogul was found not guilty of trafficking and racketeering earlier this month but was convicted of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs is set to receive his sentencing on October 3 and faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. A presidential pardon has been talked of since the beginning of Combs’ trial, and Trump even indicated in May that he was open to the idea.

The President said, when asked on the matter in the Oval Office, that “nobody’s asked but I know people are thinking about it. … I know they’re thinking about it. I think some people have been very close to asking. … First of all, I’d look at what’s happening. And I haven’t been watching it too closely, although it’s certainly getting a lot of coverage.” He continued, “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 he sort of, that relationship busted up from what I read. I don’t know. He didn’t tell me that, but I’d read some nasty statements in the paper all of a sudden. … So, I don’t know. 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.”

Attorney John Koufos, who recently met with Trump’s pardon “tsar” Alice Marie Johnson and pardon attorney Ed Martin, recently revealed elements of the case fit with Trump’s push against “over-criminalization” and “weaponization” in charging. Trump was himself charged with a racketeering conspiracy in the Georgia election interference case, and he has long railed against what he calls the weaponization of the criminal justice system. Analysts watching the Diddy case have questioned whether the government overcharged him, and Koufos wondered how the defendant could be engaging in a RICO conspiracy by themselves. “Had he been convicted of a RICO [charge], you’d be looking at something different. The fact that he was convicted of things that it seems that he pretty obviously did probably mitigates against a grant of clemency,” he said, adding there was “nothing particularly sympathetic” about the defendant.

The avenue for a potential pardon

The avenue for a potential pardon appears to run through Johnson and Martin, who previously served as Trump’s interim top U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia. Trump has long championed his signing of the First Step Act, which reauthorized Second Chance legislation meant to boost successful reentry by former prisoners into the population. He has also been open to pardoning political allies, as he did when pardoning former Republican Rep. Michael Grimm and former Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojavech. Blagojevich promptly called him a “great effing guy.”

50 Cent is a longtime Diddy rival

Rapper 50 Cent — a longtime Diddy rival who occasionally posts about the case online – said he would urge Trump not to pardon Diddy. The rapper posted on Instagram, “[Diddy] said some really bad things about Trump, it’s not ok. I’m gonna reach out so he knows how I feel about this guy. … Donald doesn’t take well to disrespect, and doesn’t forget who chooses to go against him. … While working tirelessly to make America great again there is no room for distraction. He would consider pardoning anyone who was being mistreated not Puffy Daddy.”