Donald Trump says he’s still weighing whether to grant a presidential pardon to Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs.
Diddy, who is currently jailed at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center, was recently found guilty on two out of five federal charges following a closely watched trial in early July. He was acquitted of the most serious accusations, including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. Still, the verdict landed him behind bars, despite multiple requests for bail.
Following the verdict, Trump told Newsmax, “He was celebrating a victory, but he seems, I guess it wasn't as good of a victory.” He called the mixed outcome “half-innocent.”
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Before the verdict, speculation swirled that Trump might be preparing to pardon Diddy. But now that the rapper has formally asked for presidential clemency, Trump appears reluctant.
{{/usCountry}}Before the verdict, speculation swirled that Trump might be preparing to pardon Diddy. But now that the rapper has formally asked for presidential clemency, Trump appears reluctant.
{{/usCountry}}“Probably — hmm,” he said when asked about it. “You know, I was very friendly with him. I get along with him great. Seemed like a nice guy. I didn’t know him well. But when I ran for office, he was very hostile.”
Diddy’s past words haunt him as Trump leans ‘no’ on pardon
Interestingly, Trump once attended Diddy’s famous parties, and during an episode of Celebrity Apprentice, he even vouched for the rapper when contestant Aubrey O’Day, a former member of Diddy’s girl group Danity Kane, seemed hesitant to talk about him.
However, Diddy publicly criticized Trump during his presidency in 2020, saying, “White men like Trump need to be banished.”.
“It’s hard, you know, like we’re human beings and we don’t like to have things cloud our judgment,” the POTUS told Newsmax.
“But when you know something and you were fine and then you run for office and he made some terrible statements, so I don’t know… it’s more difficult, makes it more difficult, I’m being honest, it makes it more difficult to do.”
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Pressed further, Trump admitted he’s leaning toward not issuing a pardon.
“The White House will not confirm or deny pardons that may or may not happen,” a source told Mirror US.