As Donald Trump was getting ready to depart from the White House following his 2020 election loss, he granted some of the most contentious pardons in American history. With the 10th week of his second term approaching its conclusion, it’s evident that the president is continuing his previous actions.
On the inaugural day of his second term, Trump issued approximately 1,500 pardons and commuted the sentences of 14 individuals involved in the events of January 6, including violent offenders who had assaulted law enforcement officers. Just a few days later, he continued his actions by pardoning 23 activists opposing abortion rights, seemingly indifferent to their culpability. This was followed by a pardon for former Governor Rob Blagojevich, a figure notorious for corruption in Illinois, whom Trump perceived as an ally.
Earlier this month, he issued a pardon to a Tennessee Republican who had only been serving a 21-month sentence for participating in a campaign finance fraud scheme for two weeks. As reported by CNBC this week, the list of pardons grew further.
President Donald Trump pardoned Trevor Milton, founder of Nikola Corp., for his October 2022 conviction on federal charges related to deceiving investors with fraudulent claims about the success of his electric and hydrogen-powered vehicle company. Milton, 42, was sentenced in December 2023 to four years in prison, but has been free since then as he appeals his securities and wire fraud convictions in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.
The report also indicated that this pardon came just two weeks after federal prosecutors urged U.S. District Court Judge Edgardo Ramos to order Milton to pay restitution of $680 million to Nikola shareholders and $15.2 million to Peter Hicks, a victim of his wire fraud.
Milton reportedly received a personal phone call from Trump the day before the White House officially confirmed that the president had signed the pardon.
When asked about the reasoning behind this pardon, a reporter inquired, and Trump’s response did not go as smoothly as expected.
The Republican appeared to have little knowledge of the specifics surrounding Milton’s offenses, claiming that “they” informed him that Milton and his family faced unfair treatment for political reasons. (Interestingly, Trump frequently referred to himself in the third person, for reasons that were not entirely clear.)
What the president failed to mention were some pertinent facts about Milton and his case. For instance, as noted in CNBC’s report, following his conviction, the former Nikola CEO “made substantial political donations to Trump and his allies, including $920,000 to the Trump 47 Committee in October 2024, and $750,000 in September to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s MAHA Alliance political action committee.”
Prior to his conviction, Milton had never made a campaign contribution but suddenly became quite generous in late 2024.
It’s also noteworthy that Milton’s defense attorney is Brad Bondi — a name that might ring a bell as he is the brother of Attorney General Pam Bondi.
However, the broader narrative is not solely about Milton. It has become increasingly clear that the president has established an entirely new legal and political framework without precedent in American history, where pardons are available to perceived political allies whom Trump favors.
There are reports that Sam Bankman-Fried is seeking a pardon, as is former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy. The New York Times recently mentioned that there is a dedicated White House team focusing on “clemency grants that highlight the president’s own grievances,” with well-connected lawyers and lobbyists rushing to capitalize on this.
They have charged hefty fees to clemency seekers who wouldn’t qualify for second chances under the apolitical standards usually guiding a Justice Department system designed to grant mercy to those who have served their sentences or shown remorse and a lower risk of reoffending. Instead, those seeking clemency are largely bypassing that system by tailoring their appeals to the president, emphasizing their loyalty and echoing his claims of political victimization.
The Times’ report, which hasn’t been independently verified by MSNBC or NBC News, further stated that among those eager to exploit this new pardon environment are “a rapper convicted in connection with a Malaysian embezzlement scheme, a reality TV star couple found guilty of bank fraud and tax evasion, and two D.C. police officers convicted after a chase that resulted in the death of a young man.”
Rachel Barkow, a professor at New York University School of Law and an expert in presidential clemency, was quoted, saying that while Trump’s first-term pardons were largely about “cronyism and partisanship,” the potential for corruption is even greater now “because they’re starting early, they have figured out how to establish a pipeline for people to connect with them.”
Barkow added, “Like any sequel, it’s going to be worse.”
Oh, and did I mention that Team Trump recently removed the Justice Department’s pardon attorney as part of a wider political purge in federal law enforcement? Yes, that has occurred as well.
When you next hear presidential rhetoric about “law and order” and being “tough on crime,” keep this context in mind.
This post updates our related earlier coverage.
