Trump’s ‘dirty trickster’ pal Roger Stone thanks ‘brave’ President for pardoning him and 28 others
ROGER Stone thanked President Donald Trump for pardoning him along with 28 others – claiming it took "courage" to clear his record.
Stone, Paul Manafort, and father, were among multiple pardons and three commutations from , bringing the total number of people .
Trump also pardoned Manafort, his former campaign chairman, and Stone, his longtime informal adviser, on Wednesday.
by The New York Times, both men refused to cooperate with prosecutors in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.
Manafort lied to prosecutors after initially agreeing to cooperate with Mueller, and served nearly two years in prison for , witness tampering conspiracies, and illegal foreign lobbying.
for obstruction of Congress and threatening a witness.
s father pleaded guilty to 16 counts of tax evasion, one count of lying to the Federal Election Commission, and one count of retaliating against his brother-in-law who was a federal witness.
announced Trump’s 26 pardons and three commutations as Trump flew with to his Mar-a-Lago resort in , for the Christmas holiday.
Trump’s list of pardons also included Margaret Hunter, the estranged wife of former Representative Duncan Hunter.
Margaret Hunter – – pleaded guilty to “knowingly and willingly” conspiring to use campaign funds for personal purposes.
Former Republican Representatives Chris Collins, of , and Steve Stockman, of , were also pardoned.
Manafort thanked Trump in a series of tweets on Wednesday night.
“Words cannot fully convey how grateful we are,” Manafort , speaking for himself and his family.
Others touted for Trump to pardon reportedly include , 's former campaign manager Paul Manafort, and former adviser , according to a report.
There's even speculation that .
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It's not unusual for presidents to grant clemency on their way out of .
However, Trump has made it clear that he has no issues about intervening in the cases of friends and allies whom he believes have been treated unfairly.