President Donald Trump's ally Roger Stone and his former campaign manager Paul Manafort "do not deserve" pardons because of the nature of their offenses, even if the Russia narrative was "basically a hoax," Rich Lowry, editor of the conservative National Review, said Thursday.
"Paul Manafort and Roger Stone, the nature of their offenses, the way they conducted themselves, they do not deserve this kind of clemency," Lowry told NBC's "Today." "Especially Paul Manafort, who basically ran an international lobbying operation that was more or less a criminal enterprise."
Trump Wednesday delivered several pardons, including the ones for Manafort, Stone, and real estate developer Charles Kushner, the father of Trump's son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner.
Manafort's conviction came as part of the special counsel investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. He was found guilty in 2018 of eight financial crime charges in the first trial victory for special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. A mistrial was ordered on 10 other counts.
Trump had already commuted Stone's sentence on his conviction of lying under oath to lawmakers.
Meanwhile, Lowry said it's "hard to see" Trump getting what he wants with changes to the coronavirus relief bill, particularly with his call for $2,000 checks, and "it wouldn't surprise me if he doesn't veto it."
"If he vetoes it, there is a significant chance it'll be overridden by Congress," said Lowry. "If it's not overridden, it'll just pass maybe with a bigger number in a [Joe] Biden administration."
He added that the ongoing discussions on the bill could be a "complicating factor" in Georgia's runoff elections for the Senate, but he doesn't think Trump's recent actions will affect the early days of the Biden presidency.
"If the Democrats take the Senate, it totally changes what Biden can do when he takes over," said Lowry. "The outcome in Georgia is more important than anything that President Trump has done in recent weeks."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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