President Donald Trump pardoned six people whom he says were “persecuted by the Biden Administration,” he announced on Friday afternoon.
“It is my Great Honor to have just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in, or being sent to, prison, for ‘fixing their car.’ While I know this sounds ridiculous, it is nevertheless a fact, and part of the Weaponization and Stupidity that our Country had to endure during four long years of Sleepy Joe Biden,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
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Trump’s announcement did not detail who the six pardoned individuals were, but the announcement came after reports from outlets such as CBS News that he was considering granting clemency to several high-profile people, including Sean “Diddy” Combs. Combs is serving a 50-month prison sentence for prostitution-related charges in New Jersey.
The Washington Examiner contacted the White House for comment.
Trump was also reportedly mulling over pardons on Friday for individuals convicted of vehicle emissions-related charges, the outlet also detailed. Trump did not immediately clarify which charges he was referring to when he said the individuals were imprisoned for “fixing their car.”
In early January, the Justice Department said it would no longer be criminally prosecuting individuals who install devices that circumvent vehicles’ emissions controls. Called “defeat devices,” they allow vehicles to operate while disabling installed emissions-control features and are illegal under Environmental Protection Agency regulations.
“DOJ is committed to sound enforcement principles, efficient use of government resources, and avoiding overcriminalization of federal environmental law. In partnership with the @EPA, DOJ will still pursue civil enforcement for these violations when appropriate,” the DOJ said on X in January.
Trump has granted clemency to thousands of people throughout his second term, including more than 1,500 individuals convicted of charges related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
