Politics

BREAKING: President Trump to issue over 100 pardons on his final full day in office

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President Trump is planning to issue around 100 pardons on his final full day in office, according to three people familiar with the matter.

The White House held a meeting on Sunday to finalize the list of pardons, two sources said. The pardons are one of several items the president must complete before his presidency ends on Wednesday. Trump, who had been rolling out pardons and commutations at a steady clip ahead of Christmas, had put a pause on them in the days leading up to and directly after the January 6 riots at the US Capitol, according to officials. Aides said Trump was singularly focused on the Electoral College count in the days ahead of time, precluding him for making final decisions on pardons [KFOX14].

Initially, two major batches had been ready to roll out, one at the end of last week and one on Tuesday. Now, officials expect the last batch to be the only one. The final batch of clemency actions is expected to include a mix of criminal justice reform-minded pardons and more controversial ones secured or doled out to political allies [Yahoo News].

Inside the White House, there has been a scramble to petition for pardons on behalf of allies and advocacy groups and names could be added and taken off up until the last minute, sources say. There has been a crush of pardon requests during Trump’s final days in office from allies, lobbyists and others hoping to cash in on their loyalty to Trump. The New York Times reported Sunday some of those people were getting paid tens of thousands of dollars to lobby on behalf of felons hoping for pardons [CBS].

POLITICS EDITOR: CARSON CHOATE

PHOTO CREDITS: CAROLYN KASTER/AP

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