In the aftermath of Donald Trump’s conviction, politicians have begun asking the New York Governor to grant him a pardon. The trial, which took place in Manhattan, lasted over a month, ending on a historic note. The politician has claimed the conviction has been unwelcome by American citizens.
Kathy Hochul, the governor of New York, is under pressure from politicians on both sides who believe that the Republican candidate should be pardoned. On Thursday, May 30, 2024, Trump was declared guilty by the jury after a two-hour deliberation period. The former president had been in court since April 2024, after he was charged for lying in financial records.
Trump had made a hush money payment to Stormy Daniel to keep the affair they had in 2006 a secret. Following his conviction on 34 counts of business records falsification, Trump becomes the first president with a felony conviction. However, this doesn’t bar Trump, who is the Republican presidential candidate, from contesting the 2024 election.
Trump has always asserted that he committed no crime or affair and his legal battles are politically driven. However, as the trial was under state law, Hochul, as the state executive head, can release Trump from his conviction. According to the state law, the president doesn’t have the authority to grant pardon to anybody convicted under it. Consequently, even if Trump is re-elected president, he cannot grant himself a pardon.
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In response to the law, many politicians have begun calling for his pardon, among them Nick LaLota, a Republican congressman for New York. LaLota stated on X, claiming that there is only one way to undo the political witch hunt being done to Alvin Bragg and Trump. LaLota claimed that the only way was for Hochul to announce her intention to pardon the former president immediately.
He claimed she needed to do this to prevent America from turning into a banana republic. The people should determine the fate of Trump and the presidential elections, according to LaLota. He went on to describe the trial and its prosecution as overzealous and politically impartial.
While it is expected for Republicans to rally behind Trump, nobody expected it from the Democrats. So it was surprising when Representative Dean Phillips from Minnesota, on Saturday, June 1, 2024, decided to comment on the possible pardon of Trump. Phillips had contested against President Joe Biden in the Democratic presidential primaries.
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Phillips said that the idea of making Trump a martyr over some payment to a pornstar was ridiculous. He added that the verdict is giving Trump the upper hand, and giving his supporters the armor they need to push their agenda.
However, despite their various opinions, Hochul appears to have made up her mind on the matter. She had made her opinion known in a statement that was quickly released following news of the conviction. Hochul indicated that she was not going to use her executive authority to pardon Trump.
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In a social media post, the former president’s estranged niece, Mary Trump, responded to Phillips’ X request. Mary asked if we remembered who Philip was, as she doesn’t, but his unchecked sense of importance compels him to constantly remind us of his existence.
Mary Trump said in another tweet that she is sure that over the next few days, everyone will be talking about the verdict. Consequently, the plea of an executive pardon, in which Phillips will certainly come up. She said that it was absurd that people are thinking of pardoning a convicted criminal attempting to ruin America.
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