display
Washington (AP) - Shortly before the end of his term in office, the elected US President Donald Trump pardoned other loyal companions.
Among them were the former chairman of his campaign team, Paul Manafort, and his longtime confidante Roger Stone.
Real estate entrepreneur Charles Kushner, father of Trump's advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner, was among the 26 pardons announced by the White House on Wednesday evening (local time).
Trump had only announced a series of controversial pardons on Tuesday.
Manafort had been sentenced to several years in prison for tax evasion and bank fraud.
In July, Trump had already issued a prison sentence for Stone, who was convicted of Robert Mueller's Russia investigation.
Stone was sentenced to more than three years in prison in February for, among other things, false testimony and obstruction of justice.
Kushner, on the other hand, ended up in prison for two years, among other things for tax evasion.
He has served his sentence, but with the pardon his criminal record is subsequently deleted.
display
Republican Trump was defeated by Democrat Joe Biden in the November 3rd election, but will remain president with full powers until January 20th.
Former presidents such as Democrats Bill Clinton and Barack Obama also used the right to issue pardons up to their last days in office.
At that time, too, there were always controversial cases - however, it was rather not about people who had been convicted of offenses that were directly connected with the president or his election campaign.
It was only on Tuesday that Trump pardoned his former campaign advisor George Papadopoulos.
As a result of the Russia investigation, he was sentenced to two weeks' imprisonment for false testimony to the Federal Police FBI.
He also pardoned another person who had been convicted in connection with Mueller's investigation, Alex van der Zwaan.
At the end of November, Trump had already pardoned his former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.
Flynn had been with the White House as a security advisor for just over three weeks in 2017.
He later admitted in the course of the investigation into the Russia affair that he had lied to the FBI.
Trump always condemned the Russia investigation as a "witch hunt".
Special investigator Mueller investigated whether there were agreements between the Trump camp and Russia in the 2016 election campaign.
display
In the US media, there is also constant speculation as to whether Trump could ultimately pardon himself for crimes under federal law as a precaution.
It is controversial among constitutional lawyers whether the president's pardon would be sufficient - Trump would in any case take an unprecedented step.
There are also rumors that Trump is said to have spoken to advisors about a precautionary pardon for his three eldest children, Donald Trump Junior, Eric and Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201224-99-803462 / 2