Trump calls on Justice Department to ‘bribe against pardon’ probe ‘fake news’ as Schiff suggests he could face criminal charges



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House Democratic Intelligence Committee Adam Schiff said President Donald Trump could face prosecution in a Justice Department investigation that potentially pardons were granted in exchange for campaign donations.

Widely redacted unsealed court documents on Tuesday showed the DOJ was investigating a “corruption plot” in which an anonymous individual or entity “would offer a substantial political contribution in return for a presidential pardon or a suspended sentence” . The court documents were originally obtained and posted online by CNN. Due to the redactions, the names were not disclosed. It was not immediately clear whether President Donald Trump was linked to the investigation.

Trump decried the news of the investigation on Tuesday, tweeting: “The investigation pardon is fake news!”

According to court documents, the investigation centers on two people who “acted as lobbyists to senior White House officials, without complying with the registration requirement of the Lobbying Disclosure Act.” The so-called lobbyists attempted to obtain “a presidential pardon or a suspended sentence” for an anonymous person in exchange for a large political donation.

Schiff said if Trump were linked to the scheme, he could face criminal charges. “If the president were involved, he wouldn’t be immune from prosecution for this,” Schiff said in an appearance Tuesday on MSNBC. “It should be clear under the existing law.”

Adam schiff
House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff said on Tuesday that if President Donald Trump were involved in an alleged bribery scheme, Trump could face prosecution.
Senate Television / Getty

Although Schiff pointed out that those involved “may be people we have never heard of,” he hinted that the investigation could revolve around powerful figures. “

“Someone in this conspiracy has to have a sufficiently close relationship with the President or the people around the President for this to happen,” Schiff said. “You will not pay a bribe to someone unrelated to the party that has the power to grant pardon.”

Some observers have attempted to tie Trump to the lawsuit, noting the number of high-profile pardons he granted during his administration. According to Reuters, a DOJ official said no government official was under investigation. Newsweek contacted the Justice Department for further comment.

Public information from the DOJ shows that Trump only granted 29 pardons during his time in the White House. By comparison, former President George HW Bush, who served one term between 1989 and 1993, granted 74 pardons.

Trump announced a full pardon to General Michael Flynn on Wednesday. Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI in 2017 as part of the Mueller investigation. Trump’s pardon cleared Flynn from “all possible offenses” related to the charges.



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