Published 03:12 IST, July 13th 2020
Pelosi calls for a bill to limit US President's powers as Trump commutes Stone's sentence
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Roger Stone could have directly implicated Trump in criminal misconduct, calling his pardon an act of ‘staggering corruption’
After US President Donald Trump commuted the sentence of his former campaign adviser Roger Stone, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has advocated for a bill to limit the ability of presidents to take such actions. As per international media reports. Pelosi said that Roger Stone could have directly implicated Trump in criminal misconduct and called his pardon an act of ‘staggering corruption’.
Pelosi vows to back bill
US President Donald Trump’s former campaign adviser Roger Stone had been sentenced to three years in prison on the charges of witness tampering and lying to Congress. According to reports, Stone has repeatedly refused to cooperate with investigators and did not implicate Trump, thus 'lobbying' for a pardon or commutation of his sentence from the US President.
As per reports, Congress will definitely take action so that such acts can be prevented in the future. However, tough legislation is needed to make sure than in the future, no president can grant a pardon or commute a person’s sentence when the person concerned has engaged in illegal activities in order to shield the president.
This bill proposed by the House Speaker would limit the US President's power but seems to have no chance of being passed by the Republican-led Senate. In addition, the bill would also reportedly face multiple legal challenges if it were to ever become a law.
Trump Commutes Roger Stone’s Prison term
United States President Donald Trump on Friday commuted the sentence of his former advisor and longtime ally Roger Stone just days before Stone was to start his 40-month sentence in a federal prison in Jesup, Georgia.
Commutation of a sentence reduces the sentence, either totally or partially, according to the Department of Justice's Office of the Pardon Attorney. A commutation can also release a person from a fine imposed at sentencing, at least the part of the fine that has not been paid already.
Updated 03:12 IST, July 13th 2020