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Donald Trump said again about the rumors about one Possible pardon for Sean Combsthe hip-hop mogul, which was convicted in two cases for promoting prostitution in two cases. He described him as “half -down”. But agreed to a moderator who asked whether a pardon was “not likely”.
On July 2, Combs was acquitted of more serious charges for human trade for sexual purposes and conspiracy for organized crime. Nevertheless, the two prostitution inventory could theoretically judge him to up to ten years in prison if the judgment is announced on October 3. (However, right -wing experts told the Rolling Stone that they expect a significantly lower punishment.)
Trump: “He was basically half -down”
“Well, he was basically, I think, somehow half-down,” Trump told the Newsmax moderator Rob Finnerty on Friday evening. “”[Er ist] Still in prison or something. But he celebrated a victory. But I guess it was not so much victory. “
Trump and Combs have had a changeable relationship since their first meeting in the 1990s. Over the years, the real estate mogul has been seen at numerous VIP parties and events of Combs in New York City. Including at the legendary birthday parties of the Badboy founder. In an episode of “The Apprentice” in 2012, Trump called Combs “a good friend”, while Combs Trump – shortly after his first candidacy – called “a friend of mine”.
But when he was asked by the “Daily Beast” to Trump in 2017, Combs said: “I honestly think that we are interested in a shit what is with Trump. Because because [Schwarze] are in the same shitty situation anyway. That’s not what we are doing. ” In 2020, Combs said in conversation with Charlamagne Tha God: “White men like Trump have to be banished. This way of thinking is really dangerous. This man literally threatened us and our families because we wanted to choose. The top priority is to get Trump out of office.”
Trump: “It makes it more difficult”
When asked about a possible pardon in May, Trump said: “I haven’t seen him in years. Not spoken to him. He liked me really very much. But I think when I was politically active, this relationship broke. I suddenly read a few rather common statements in the newspaper.” However, he was at least partially compassionate towards Combs’ location. And said reporters that he would “definitely look at the facts of the case”. “I know that people are thinking about it,” he added. “People are pretty close to demanding it.”
During the interview on Friday, Trump remembered. “I was very friendly with him. I got along well with him. Znd [er] seemed to be a nice guy. I didn’t know him well. But when I ran, he was very hostile. It’s difficult, do you know? We are people. And we don’t like it when our judgments are clouded right? But if you knew someone and everything was good, and then you run and he makes terrible statements. So I don’t know. It makes it more difficult. “
Confident from Combs are committed to pardon behind the scenes
As Rolling Stone reported in May, confidants of the Mogul began to contact the environment shortly after Trump’s election victory last November. During the transition phase to the presidency and in the first few months of Trump’s second term, several long-time friends and companions from Combs began to contact Trump-related administrative officials and people in the area of the president, as two sources familiar with the matter and another informed person told the Rolling Stone.
The few high-ranking Trump officials who knew about the conversations expressed great concerns about a possible pardon of Combs in view of the severity of the allegations. (A Combs spokesman did not immediately respond to an interview on a request for comment on Friday.)
Lobby campaign for pardon, but resistance from survivors
It is unclear whether Combs’ acquittal from the most serious charges has changed the assessment of the president or his employees. As Rolling Stone reported on Thursday, the Combs team has intensified its lobby efforts in the past few weeks, as people inside and outside the Trump administration reported. “The pleading is [diesen Monat] Great, ”said a Trump consultant. And referred to the noticeably increasing attempts by Combs allied to influence Trump.
In the past few weeks, long -standing allies of Combs have offered political surgeons, lobbyists and others with close connections to Trump and government officials to help with a possible pardon by Trump. This said three people familiar with the matter to the Rolling Stone. One of these sources said that the offer known to her was moving in the middle six -digit range.
Several Trump consultants are still of the opinion that Combs’ pardon would be a serious, self-inflicted mistake. Especially since the administration continues to be involved in a scandal to deal with the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.
Surviving plan letter against pardon
There are also ongoing discussions among survivors to send a personal letter to Trump, in which they urge to warn of pardon. Rolling Stone viewed a design copy of the letter in which Combs is accused of “backing control” and “wanting to rewrite the story” after his conviction. A pardon, according to the draft, “would not be justice”. But “a devastating signal of survivors everywhere. That our life, our pain and our truth are still negotiable.”
On Thursday morning, Combs’ lawyers submitted a 62-page entry, in which they asked the judge to remove his conviction for promoting prostitution and to fully talk him out. Or to set a new procedure “only at these two charges”. At the beginning of this week, they also made an application to leave Combs released against deposit. The public prosecutor’s office of the Southern District of New York submitted an application on Thursday evening, in which it demanded that Combs remain in custody until the verdict was prisoned.