Despite the fact that he’s in the midst of an impeachment inquiry over allegations of extorting Ukraine for dirt on the Bidens, our so-called “president” doesn’t seem to have any desire to build some sort of positive persona. You’d think he’d want to appear as if he cared about everything going on, but no… Instead, he took it upon himself today to grant clemency to three U.S. soldiers involved in cases of war crimes. Violent war crimes, at that.
According to reports:
‘The White House said in a statement issued late Friday that Trump had signed executive grants of clemency for both Army Maj. Mathew Golsteyn and Army Lt. Clint Lorance.
‘Trump also signed an order restoring the rank of Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher to that which he held before he was tried and found not guilty of nearly all charges in the death of an ISIS prisoner in Iraq.’
The keywords in that last paragraph above are “nearly all” because he was NOT acquitted of all of the charges, but I digress…
White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement:
‘The President, as Commander-in-Chief, is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the law is enforced and when appropriate, that mercy is granted.
‘For more than two hundred years, presidents have used their authority to offer second chances to deserving individuals, including those in uniform who have served our country.
‘These actions are in keeping with this long history. As the President has stated, “when our soldiers have to fight for our country, I want to give them the confidence to fight.”‘
The charges against these men should not be taken lightly, but evidently Trump has decided to do just that.
Golsteyn, a former Green Beret, was charged with murdering an Afghan man while deployed in the war-torn country in 2010. Golsteyn had pleaded not guilty in the case.
Lorance was found guilty in 2013 of murder in the second degree for ordering the soldiers in his command to open fire on three unarmed Afghan men on a motorcycle. He has served six years of his 19-year prison sentence.
Featured image via screenshot.
