'Pardons as favors': Top lawmaker accuses Trump DOJ of rewarding 'corruption and violence'

One high-ranking House Democrat is now openly asking the Department of Justice (DOJ) about President Donald Trump's approach to granting pardons in his second term, and if the president is only focusing on those who have demonstrated appropriate fealty to him.

CBS News reported Friday that Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who is the ranking member on the powerful House Judiciary Committee, recently sent a letter to DOJ pardon attorney Ed Martin asking him direct questions about the criteria Trump considers for official pardons and commutations. Raskin accused Martin of using his office to "dole out pardons as favors to the President's loyal political followers and most generous donors, completely ignoring and abandoning the thousands of individual applications for clemency in the normal process."

"The new criteria for granting pardons appear to be: showing absolute personal and political loyalty to President Trump; giving substantial financial contributions to MAGA and the President's political network; and engaging in forms of political corruption and violence that promote MAGA power and authoritarianism," Raskin wrote.

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Earlier this week, Trump announced he was officially pardoning reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, who were convicted by his first-term DOJ of defrauding banks out of millions of dollars in loans as well as tax evasion. He also pardoned rapper Youngboy Never Broke Again (formerly NBA Youngboy), who was convicted of gun charges, as well as former Virginia Sheriff Scott Jenkins, who was convicted of fraud and bribery charges.

According to CBS, some pardon recipients have made significant financial contributions to Trump and his aligned political action committees (PACs). Pardon recipient Trevor Milton donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to a pro-Trump PAC, and the mother of pardon recipient Paul Walczak recently attended a $1 million per-plate fundraiser.

During his Friday press conference with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in the Oval Office, Trump notably did not rule out pardoning music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, who is currently on trial for multiple charges including human trafficking, kidnapping, forced labor, arson and bribery, among others. Former Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) — who was convicted for bribery and failing to register as a foreign agent and sentenced to 11 years in prison last fall — also sent several tweets on Friday praising Trump's DOJ while criticizing Democrats.

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that those angling for pardons have taken the approach of befriending someone in Trump's inner circle who can then "make a pitch" on their behalf. The president is reportedly receptive to arguments that a defendant was the victim of a politically motivated prosecution — something Trump himself repeatedly alleged after he was convicted of 34 felonies last summer.

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Click here to read CBS' report in full.