Former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos told Hill.TV on Friday that he does not have any expectations of receiving a pardon from President Trump.
“I cannot convince or not convince the president to pardon me or anyone in this country,” Papadopoulos told hosts Jamal Simmons and Shermichael Singleton on “Rising.”
“The president is going to make a decision. I don’t have an expectation for a pardon, so if he does it, I’ve made it clear that I would honorably accept a pardon from him,” he added.
Papadopoulos served 12 days of a two-week prison sentence last year for lying to FBI agents about his contacts with individuals linked to Russia during the 2016 campaign. He pleaded guilty to the charges in October 2017.
The charges arose from special counsel Robert Muller’s investigation, which concluded last week. After the allegations against him were made public, Trump and his allies dismissed Papadopoulos as being a low-level volunteer on the campaign.
On Tuesday, Papadopoulos said that his lawyers have asked Trump for a pardon.
“I believe that when the facts are out there, that there’s certainly the basis for why my lawyers believe that I deserve a pardon,” he said. “I believe that there was a tremendous injustice done in my case in this entire saga.”
“I believe the truth is going to get out there. It’s going to terrify Americans of what the previous administration and the FBI was doing to American citizens, such as myself, and then we’ll see what happens,” he added.
Attorney General William Barr said earlier this week that Mueller’s probe did not find that there was collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. The special counsel did not make a determination as to whether President Trump obstructed justice, according to Barr.
— Julia Manchester
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