Trump commuting the 7-year sentence of George Santos

[no_hypocrisy]

Last edited Sun Oct 19, 2025, 07:49 AM - Edit history (1)

He didn't even wait for the felon to serve one year out of the seven.

Trump claimed that he believed that seven years in prison was too harsh a punishment.

Let's look at that. When you are convicted of a crime, the prosecutor(s) recommends a punishment that is laid out in the criminal statute(s). The judge reviews the recommendation, looks at the trial record. Sometimes the punishment has a range of low to the highest amount of years and/or monetary fine.

Both the prosecutor and the judge believed that seven years was a sufficient amount of time to punish Santos. They didn't pull that number out of their asses. It was within the statute(s) and likely given to other convicted defendants for the same crimes.

Trump summarily overrode the prosecutor and the judge. Three months out of 84. That's 3.57% of the original term. IOW, Trump interfered with the judicial system again. I'm surprised that he didn't demand that Santos be reimbursed for the three months he served.

But I'm also wondering why Trump didn't full out pardon him.

[unblock]

1. Donnie was sentence to nothing after being convicted of 34 felonies.

And he pardoned 1500 insurrectionists, many of whom confessed and nearly all of which had blatant video evidence and/or text messages against them.

Santos seems par for the course.

As for why commute and not pardon, maybe Santos didn't pay enough....

[gab13by13]

2. Santos, a pathological liar, like Krasnov,

is very good friends with MTG. Just maybe Krasnov made a deal for MTG to take her name off the Epstein discharge petition?

Just a thought.

[Irish_Dem]

3. How much did Santos pay for the pardon? Where did he get the money?

Or did some billionaire pay the bribe for him?

To unleash another criminal MAGA into DC?

[Historic NY]

4. I'd laugh if he wrote a check

[Irish_Dem]

5. Trump would demand cash or some sort of promise.

Maybe Santos will going the Trump Crime Syndicate in some capacity.

[unblock]

6. Right! Would Donnie pardon him for bouncing it! LOL

[LetMyPeopleVote]

7. MaddowBlog-With George Santos, Trump finds another convicted congressional Republican to reward

The president has now pardoned or commuted the sentences of most of the Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century.

In the wake of the George Santos rescue, Trump has now pardoned or commuted the sentences of most of the Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-10-20T13:25:11.734Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/george-santos-trump-finds-another-convicted-congressional-republican-r-rcna238611

About six months ago, disgraced former Republican Rep. George Santos, facing overwhelming evidence of guilt, reached a plea deal with prosecutors and agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Asked around this time whether he would appeal to Donald Trump for a rescue, the former New York congressman said, “You bet your sweet a-- I would.”....

Two months later, my MSNBC colleague Erum Salam reported:

President Donald Trump is commuting the sentence of former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., and said the disgraced lawmaker should be quickly released from prison. ... Trump called the 37-year-old Santos something of a ‘rogue,’ but added that he was also ‘a Great Hero.’

.....In his first term, Trump effectively wielded his pardon and commutation power as a corrupt weapon, rewarding loyalists, completing cover-ups, undermining federal law enforcement and doling out favors to the politically connected, resulting in some of the most controversial pardons in American history. Many of these actions, however, transpired after his 2020 election defeat — when it seemed as if his political career was over and he no longer had to concern himself with consequences.

But in the first year of his second term, it appears Trump is no longer concerned about appearances or the pretense of propriety. He’s corrupting the process; he knows that he’s corrupting the process; he knows that we know that he’s corrupting the process; and he’s doing it anyway.

On the first day of his second term, Trump issued roughly 1,500 pardons and commuted the sentences of 14 Jan. 6 criminals, including violent felons who were in prison for assaulting police officers. A few days later, he kept going, pardoning 23 anti-abortion rights activists, seemingly unconcerned with their guilt. That was soon followed by a pardon for former Gov. Rob Blagojevich, a man synonymous with corruption in Illinois politics, whom Trump saw as an ally.......

What’s more, The Washington Post published this memorable roundup on the last day of Trump’s first term:

Since Trump took office, two incumbent Republican congressmen have been convicted of crimes, Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) and Duncan D. Hunter (R-Calif.), as has a former congressman, Steve Stockman (R-Tex.). Trump pardoned all three of them. Trump also pardoned four former Republican congressmen convicted before his presidency: Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.), Robin Hayes (R-N.C.), Mark Siljander (R-Mich.) and Randall “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.). ... [A]ccording to GovTrack’s Legislator Misconduct Database, Trump has now pardoned a majority of Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century.[/blockquote]

With the Santos commutation, the new total of Trump rescues for congressional Republicans convicted of crimes has reached 10 — and counting. (While some congressional Democrats have also been convicted of crimes in recent years, to date, none of them has benefited from the incumbent president’s magnanimity.).....

For all the GOP hysterics during the Biden era about a “two-tiered” system of justice, it seems the White House has gone out of its way to create the very dynamic Republicans claimed to be against.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

8. MaddowBlog-With George Santos, Trump finds another convicted congressional Republican to reward

The president has now pardoned or commuted the sentences of most of the Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century.

In the wake of the George Santos rescue, Trump has now pardoned or commuted the sentences of most of the Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-10-20T13:25:11.734Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/george-santos-trump-finds-another-convicted-congressional-republican-r-rcna238611

About six months ago, disgraced former Republican Rep. George Santos, facing overwhelming evidence of guilt, reached a plea deal with prosecutors and agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Asked around this time whether he would appeal to Donald Trump for a rescue, the former New York congressman said, “You bet your sweet a-- I would.”....

Two months later, my MSNBC colleague Erum Salam reported:

President Donald Trump is commuting the sentence of former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., and said the disgraced lawmaker should be quickly released from prison. ... Trump called the 37-year-old Santos something of a ‘rogue,’ but added that he was also ‘a Great Hero.’

.....In his first term, Trump effectively wielded his pardon and commutation power as a corrupt weapon, rewarding loyalists, completing cover-ups, undermining federal law enforcement and doling out favors to the politically connected, resulting in some of the most controversial pardons in American history. Many of these actions, however, transpired after his 2020 election defeat — when it seemed as if his political career was over and he no longer had to concern himself with consequences.

But in the first year of his second term, it appears Trump is no longer concerned about appearances or the pretense of propriety. He’s corrupting the process; he knows that he’s corrupting the process; he knows that we know that he’s corrupting the process; and he’s doing it anyway.

On the first day of his second term, Trump issued roughly 1,500 pardons and commuted the sentences of 14 Jan. 6 criminals, including violent felons who were in prison for assaulting police officers. A few days later, he kept going, pardoning 23 anti-abortion rights activists, seemingly unconcerned with their guilt. That was soon followed by a pardon for former Gov. Rob Blagojevich, a man synonymous with corruption in Illinois politics, whom Trump saw as an ally.......

What’s more, The Washington Post published this memorable roundup on the last day of Trump’s first term:

Since Trump took office, two incumbent Republican congressmen have been convicted of crimes, Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) and Duncan D. Hunter (R-Calif.), as has a former congressman, Steve Stockman (R-Tex.). Trump pardoned all three of them. Trump also pardoned four former Republican congressmen convicted before his presidency: Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.), Robin Hayes (R-N.C.), Mark Siljander (R-Mich.) and Randall “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.). ... [A]ccording to GovTrack’s Legislator Misconduct Database, Trump has now pardoned a majority of Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century.[/blockquote]

With the Santos commutation, the new total of Trump rescues for congressional Republicans convicted of crimes has reached 10 — and counting. (While some congressional Democrats have also been convicted of crimes in recent years, to date, none of them has benefited from the incumbent president’s magnanimity.).....

For all the GOP hysterics during the Biden era about a “two-tiered” system of justice, it seems the White House has gone out of its way to create the very dynamic Republicans claimed to be against.