WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� President Donald Trump on Friday pardoned 11 people, including a former business partner of Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff and nine people identified by the White House as having helped people bypass emissions control systems on vehicles.
The acts of clemency come as Trump , particularly for and those seen as politically aligned.
His use of the presidency鈥檚 sweeping ability to unilaterally grant pardons and commute sentences is among the ways the Republican鈥檚 return to office has featured an .
Trump earlier on Friday announced some of the pardons on social media, without identifying any of the recipients by name.
鈥淚t is my Great Honor to have just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in, or being sent to, prison, for 鈥榝ixing their car,鈥欌�� Trump wrote on his Truth Social media network.
鈥淚 AM SETTING THEM ALL FREE, RIGHT NOW!鈥� he said.
In a list provided Friday evening by the White House, Trump pardoned 11 people, including nine who faced charges related to violations of the Clean Air Act by disabling emissions monitoring systems on vehicles or selling devices that enabled emissions systems to be bypassed.
The pardons come after Trump on Monday signed a memo telling the Environmental Protection Agency that Americans can fix their own vehicles as they see fit. As he signed the memo, Trump referenced a diesel mechanic he pardoned last year who disabled emissions monitoring systems.
The memo also addressed aftermarket auto parts and would supersede the ability of the California Air Resources Board to evaluate parts that affect vehicle emissions.
The White House, in releasing the list of those pardoned, described Trump having 鈥渞elieved consumers from these regulatory burdens.鈥�
Beyond the emissions-related pardons, Trump on Friday also issued a pardon for Adam Kidan, a former business partner of Abramoff.
Kidan pleaded guilty in 2005 to fraud and conspiracy related to the purchase of a fleet of gambling boats, and in 2006 he was sentenced to nearly six years in prison.
The case was part of a broader investigation of the early 2000s lobbying scandal involving Abramoff, Capitol Hill, the Interior Department and members of President George W. Bush鈥檚 administration.
After leaving prison in 2009, Kidan began working at a staffing agency, went on to found a staffing business, Chartwell Staffing Solutions, and now serves as president of Empire Workforce Solutions, the White House said.
In March, the newspaper Newsday reported that Kidan was among the hosts of a fundraiser at Trump鈥檚 Mar-a-Lago resort for a Long Island Republican congressional candidate.
A message sent to Kidan鈥檚 business seeking comment was not immediately returned Friday evening.
Trump on Friday also pardoned ranch owner Jack Harvard, citing an 鈥渦pstanding record鈥� post-conviction and praising him for allowing the U.S. military and NATO troops to train on his land free of charge.
The White House did not immediately release additional details about Harvard, including his conviction.
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