The ignorant shrieking of the media baboons. I can’t take it anymore.
“Mr. D’Souza was, in the President’s opinion, a victim of selective prosecution for violations of campaign finance laws. Mr. D’Souza accepted responsibility for his actions, and also completed community service by teaching English to citizens and immigrants seeking citizenship,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement, adding “in light of these facts, the President has determined that Mr. D’Souza is fully worthy of this pardon.”
Prosecution was brought by Chuck Schumer’s former aid Preet Bharara. As Ed Morrissey notes, this sort of strawman donation is a very common crime which is very rarely — if ever — prosecuted as a crime. Usually it’s punished by a civil suit and fine. But Preet Bharara was looking for a scalp. Even a fan of Bharara’s, Alan Derschowitz, said this smacked of “selective prosecution.”
He quotes from the Wall Street Journal:
“The idea of charging him with a felony for this doesn’t sound like a proper exercise of prosecutorial discretion,” Mr. Dershowitz said. “I can’t help but think that [D’Souza’s] politics have something to do with it. . . . It smacks of selective prosecution.” …Mr. Dershowitz said the world of politics is rife with the sort of campaign abuses alleged. They’re so common, in fact, he said he himself been called upon to participate in similar arrangements. Mr. Dershowitz said he’s spoken with Mr. D’Souza since the indictment was announced.
No word yet on any prosecutions of Rosie O’Donnell for repeatedly evading federal donation limits by using alternate forms of her name and alternate addresses, which just so happened to have the consequence of not being picked up on by software designed to reject donations that exceed the legal limit.
Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D’Souza today. He was treated very unfairly by our government!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2018
The media is shrieking about this — because of course they are — and claiming that Obama and Bill Clinton never gave out such dubious pardons.
They conveniently forget that Obama pardoned the traitor Bradley Manning — despite Manning never showing remorse for his actions, which is generally a requirement for a pardon (absent actual innocence) — and also pardoned the terrorist bomber Oscar Lopez Rivera, just because Hispanics are an important part of his political coalition. (Lopez Rivera also shows no remorse, and is proud of his terrorism and bombing.)
Clinton pardoned Portorican Terrorists Obama pardoned rapists and murderers we heard Crickets Trump pardons Dsouza Feeding Freinzie
D’Souza knowingly made illegal campaign contributions, concealing them by using “straw donors” which he reimbursed to the extend of their donations. That’s an actual crime, which was unambiguously proved to have taken place with actual evidence.
Selective prosecution is total horseshit. The man knowingly committed a crime.
@Greg: True D’Souza knowingly made illegal campaign contributions, concealing them by using “straw donors” which he reimbursed to the extend of their donations. I wonder if he will return to his life of crime that ruined the lives of so many.
Gill was arrested in February2017 after crashing his vehicle into another motorist and undercover police cars while fleeing from a drug deal. He was charged with possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Gill was also the subject of an article by the Washington Times after his release in which he stated how thankful he was for an opportunity to turn his life around.
“I am granting your application because you have demonstrated the potential to turn your life around,” Obama wrote in a signed letter to Gill.
D’Souza was a talented writer who came to realize that throwing red meat to a rabid base was more lucrative than an honest career.
Ah. So, where are the OTHER prosecutions? If Rosie the Pig was prosecuted, would you concede it was because she broke the law and not because she is a fat liberal pig that spews hatred and lies?
That’s really something, Trump granting a pardon when most of the sentence has been served.
@Kitt, #3:
Obama’s pardons gave no appearance of sending a message that those who took a fall to protect him might receive a presidential pardon. Nor was he pardoning political celebrities to win points with his base.
She didn’t do anything for which she could be prosecuted. Like collusion, being a total jackass isn’t actually a crime.
@Greg: He pardoned Manning to pander to the LGBTXYZWRGHPKL community. He didn’t care that it insulted the entire military and IC. He pardoned a Puerto Rican terrorist to pander to Hispanics and terrorists.
When it came to pardons for those in his administration that were involved in Fast and Furious, IRS targeting, waivers for BP causing the Deepwater Horizon blowout, the EPA ruining a river, Hillary influence peddling, Hillary illegally storing classified information or any of his other scandals was not necessary; he simply never held anyone responsible.
She didn’t do anything for which she could be prosecuted.
Filings show O’Donnell gave a combined $5,400 in contributions over the limit to the five candidates, and used five different New York addresses and four variations of her name.