U.S. President Donald Trump has described music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs as “sort of half-innocent” following his recent federal conviction, but indicated that a pardon would be “more difficult” due to Combs’ past criticisms of him.
Speaking in an interview on the conservative news channel Newsmax on Friday night, Trump addressed the possibility of pardoning Combs, who was convicted on 2 July of two counts of transporting individuals to engage in prostitution. Each count carries a potential sentence of up to ten years in prison. The 54-year-old was, however, acquitted of more serious charges including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
“He was essentially, I guess, sort of half-innocent,” Trump told Newsmax host Rob Finnerty. “He was celebrating a victory, but I guess it wasn’t as good of a victory.”
Rumours of a possible pardon have circulated in recent weeks, reigniting public interest due to Trump’s history of issuing controversial pardons, particularly to political allies and associates. The president, who was himself convicted earlier this year of falsifying business records, has repeatedly used pardons to question and criticise the legitimacy of the U.S. justice system.
Trump unveils saga complication
However, Trump suggested that Combs’ outspoken disapproval of him in the past complicates matters. In a 2017 interview with the Daily Beast, Combs said he did not “really give a f*** about Trump”. Then in 2020, following Trump’s election defeat to Joe Biden, Combs told radio personality Charlamagne tha God that “white men like Trump need to be banished”.
“The number one priority is to get Trump out of office,” the rapper and producer stated at the time.
Trump appeared to allude to these remarks in the Newsmax interview. “When I ran for office, he was very hostile,” he said. “It’s hard, you know? We’re human beings. And we don’t like to have things cloud our judgment, right? But when you knew someone and you were fine, and then you run for office, and he made some terrible statements. So I don’t know … It makes it more difficult to do.”
Combs is currently being held at New York City’s only operational federal detention facility, pending sentencing scheduled for 3 October. He has requested to be released on a $50 million bond in the meantime.
The closure of another New York City federal facility, the Metropolitan Correctional Center, followed the high-profile death of financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2019. Epstein, a former associate of Trump’s, died under suspicious circumstances while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
Trump’s Justice Department faced bipartisan condemnation after declining to release further documents from the Epstein investigation, despite promises of transparency from both Trump and then Attorney General Pam Bondi.
The subject of pardons has resurfaced amid ongoing public scrutiny, with Trump also being asked about the possibility of pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell. Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year sentence for conspiring with Epstein to sexually abuse minors and was recently moved to a lower-security prison in Texas.
“Well, I’m allowed to give her a pardon,” Trump said of Maxwell. “But right now, it would be inappropriate to talk about it.”
The comments mark a renewed spotlight on Trump’s use of presidential clemency powers, as he navigates both legal troubles and a bid for a third term in office.
