President Donald Trump has faced outrage after the Justice Department overruled the prosecutors working on the obstruction and witness tampering case against former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone, and urged a federal court to give him a far more lenient sentence than recommended. But that isn't the end of it — Trump has suggested he may be considering giving Stone a presidential pardon, and some of his ardent supporters, like Fox News host Tucker Carlson, are urging him to do it.
But not everyone within the president's orbit is so enthusiastic about this idea. One unnamed White House aide, reported Politico, is hoping Trump does not go through with a Stone pardon.
"It's not necessary. Because the guy committed serious crimes," said the official. "Donald Trump is impressed when people do a good job for him and don't make themselves the story. Oh, and don't break the law."
Stone's indictment and subsequent seven-count felony conviction stems from his lies to federal officials during the Russia investigation about his role in the Trump campaign's coordination with WikiLeaks, and his subsequent attempts to strongarm and threaten fellow witnesses into coordinating their stories with him.