On Tuesday night time’s installment of The Supply with Kaitlan Collins, conspiracy theories had been in no brief provide concerning the latest actions of President Trump to pardon actuality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, saying they had been politically motivated to “defend” donors and supporters of the President.
The dialogue centered on the Chrisleys, who had been convicted of financial institution fraud and tax evasion in 2022, and suffered an arguably harsher sentence than most for his or her crimes. President Trump introduced their pardons on Could 27, 2025, with fast criticism from the left to observe.
“However solely months into the President’s second time period, we’re seeing a sample take form as he makes use of the one authority that no court docket or Congress can test to assist excessive profile mates, supporters, and donors,” Collins mentioned.
In the course of the present, Collins confirmed a plethora of clips from varied sources showcasing the Chrisley’s daughter, Savannah, advocating for her guardian’s launch, stating that she believes her dad and mom had been painted in too harsh a lightweight merely due to their conservative beliefs and assist of Trump. Savannah acknowledged that evaluating her household to the Trumps throughout their trial made the method political, and resulted in a harsher sentence than crucial.
Afterwards, Collins started her dialogue along with her panel of “knowledgeable sources”, together with CNN’s Elliot Williams, Semafor’s Shelby Talcott, and Reuters’ Jeff Mason.
Williams rapidly tried to query the moral implications of pardoning the Chrisley’s non-violent crimes, stating that: “The jury appeared to suppose that they had been responsible. The appeals court docket that regarded on the case thereafter appeared to suppose that they had been responsible. So this concept that people had been singled out and handled unfairly by the prison justice system is simply merely ludicrous.”
Nevertheless, the panelists, together with Semafor’s Shelby Talcott and Reuters’ Jeff Mason, advised that the pardons is perhaps a part of a broader sample of Trump utilizing his clemency energy to help high-profile supporters and donors.
Talcott remarked that the President “feels form of unleashed” and could also be utilizing pardons to reward allies, whereas Mason famous that the Chrisleys’ daughter had beforehand spoken on the Republican Nationwide Conference, and drew a parallel between her household’s authorized battles and Trump’s personal.
Regardless of these discussions, there isn’t a substantiated proof linking the pardons to political donations or marketing campaign assist, and there’s no standards to be eligible to obtain a presidential pardon.
For Mason’s half, he threw skepticism at one other pardon from Trump’s first time period. “The one factor that was placing to me was seeing that video with Alice Johnson standing subsequent to him, as a result of her case was actually a lot completely different, with the exception that her case was championed by one other actuality TV star, Kim Kardashian,” he famous, failing to say that Johnson’s pardon had bipartisan assist.
Johnson had served 20+ years in jail for a non-violent drug crime.
This criticism raises an fascinating level of competition. Whereas Democrats are inclined to usually advocate for leniency towards non-violent offenders, their criticism of Trump’s latest actions spotlight an fascinating double customary. As an illustration, the Democratic Occasion has supported varied initiatives aimed toward decreasing sentences for non-violent offenders, like California’s Proposition 57, supported by Democratic lawmakers, which permits parole consideration for nonviolent felons and adjustments insurance policies on juvenile prosecution.
The left’s criticism of President Trump’s pardon of the Chrisleys, as highlighted on The Supply, counsel that the opposition doesn’t come from true conviction or perception, however slightly is simply one other solution to contradict the actions of Trump, undermine his effectiveness as President, and unfold baseless conspiracy theories to suit their agenda.
The total transcript is under. Click on “increase” to learn.
CNNs The Supply with Kaitlan Collins
Could 27, 2025
9:02:39 PM EST(…)
KAITLAN COLLINS: Now, any chief who occupies the Oval Workplace has the ability to pardon whomever they need, and lots of of them actually have. However solely months into the President’s second time period, we’re seeing a sample take form as he makes use of the one authority that no court docket or Congress can test to assist excessive profile mates, supporters, and donors.
Shortly earlier than the White Home confirmed that the President was pardoning the Chrisleys, he additionally pardoned former Virginia Sheriff, Scott Jenkins, an announcement that got here simply hours earlier than the long-time Trump supporter was anticipated to report back to jail for conspiracy, fraud, and bribery. The President argued that Sheriff Jenkins and his household, quote, “have been dragged by hell by a corrupt and weaponized Biden Justice Division.”
And tonight, The New York Instances is reporting that final month’s pardon of Paul Walczak and a tax crimes case got here after his mom attended a $1 million per individual fundraising dinner for the President at his Mar-a-Lago membership in Florida.
My authorized supply to start out us off tonight is CNN authorized analyst Elliot Williams, who’s joined right here by my deeply sourced White Home insiders, Semafor’s Shelby Talcott and Reuters’ Jeff Mason. It is so nice to have you ever all right here on our new set tonight. So thanks for becoming a member of us.
Elliot, I need to get your take, although, as a result of what we heard from the President there within the Oval Workplace was he was saying that they had been unfairly handled, the Chrisleys had been, and that’s partly why he is– he is pardoning them. We heard that from a White Home spokesperson tonight who additionally simply instructed us earlier than we got here on air that is why, based mostly on what you realize, is that description correct?
ELLIOT WILLIAMS: Properly, earlier than we start, we had been speaking beforehand about who’d get to be the primary to talk on the brand new set. And look, I win– I win the competition.
JEFF MASON: Elliot wins!
COLLINS: I imply technically, its me–
WILLIAMS: No, the primary–
COLLINS: – You’re the primary visitor.
WILLIAMS: The primary non-Kaitlan. Fortunate individual–
COLLINS: – It’s honored.
WILLIAMS: No, no. Had been they handled unfairly? It appeared–
COLLINS: – Was this in line? Was this typical?
WILLIAMS: No! No! However here is the factor. Like a jury appeared to suppose that they had been responsible. The appeals court docket that regarded on the case thereafter appeared to suppose that they had been responsible. So this concept that people had been singled out and handled unfairly by the prison justice system is simply merely ludicrous.
Now, once more, I need to be clear, as you talked about in– within the tease right here, the President has each energy and each proper to pardon who he needs. That is– Article Two of the Structure makes that fairly clear. However the concept these of us had been singled out ultimately, nothing within the report appears to point that in any method.
COLLINS: Yeah. I do not suppose it is that shocking, although, Jeff and Shelby, to see that this occurred. I imply, she was– the Chrisleys had been actually on the President’s radar from having Savannah Chrisley communicate on the conference, their daughter, to doing interviews that– that clearly the President, she is aware of, is watching right here relating to this when it comes to what this seems like. And he or she additionally was a part of a group Trump girls’s tour, the place she was basically, you realize, on the market actually supporting him, but additionally attempting to attract a comparability between her household and the way Trump himself has been handled.
MASON: I believe that was very intelligent. I imply, listening to her interview with Laura Trump actually made me suppose, properly, that is the way in which to do it, you realize, when you’ve acquired the connection and also you’re ready to attract a parallel between what you’re experiencing and your loved ones and what the President and his household have skilled, which is one thing that President Trump complains about loads, feeling like he was falsely or unfairly persecuted, then you are going to get some sympathy. And also you even have that actuality TV connection.
The one factor that was placing to me was seeing that video with Alice Johnson standing subsequent to him, as a result of her case was actually a lot completely different, with the exception that her case was championed by one other actuality TV star, Kim Kardashian.
COLLINS: Yeah, that is a superb level. What are you listening to, Shelby, and simply seeing within the sample of how the President is utilizing his pardon energy so early on on this time period? Generally, Presidents wait till in a while to make use of their extra controversial pardons that come out.
SHELBY TALCOTT: Yeah, I believe this time period round, the President, in all features, feels form of unleashed. He looks like he can do no matter he desires, for a number of causes. I keep in mind when– one of many large issues I keep in mind when Trump first acquired into workplace, was his aides speaking concerning the Biden pardons on the finish of President Biden’s time period and the way he pardoned his household, and so they felt like that gave them form of a move to form of do no matter they wished with these pardons, and we’re seeing that.
And I additionally suppose, to Jeff’s level, concerning the, form of, weaponization of the DOJ argument, we have seen Trump say that with a number of folks that he is pardoned. So there is a clear line with Trump believing that these individuals have– have had these circumstances which were weaponized with the DOJ, similar to we heard him say on the marketing campaign path over the previous few years, his argument that his personal circumstances had been weaponized by the DOJ.
(…)
