Washington- Following a wave of pardons including disgraced former Congressmen Duncan Hunter and Chris Collins, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Executive Director Noah Bookbinder released the following statement:

“There have been many shameful, craven displays of Donald Trump using the presidency to benefit himself and his cronies, but there may not be any worse than these pardons. In Duncan Hunter, Chris Collins and Steve Stockman, you have three of the most corrupt Members of Congress in recent history, including the first two members to endorse Trump. They are prime examples of politicians using their positions to benefit themselves rather than look out for their constituents. Add in two people convicted of lying to investigators as part of the Mueller investigation. And top it off with four Blackwater guards convicted of killing Iraqi civilians. Blackwater, of course, was owned by Erik Prince, a major backer of Trump and brother of Betsy DeVos. Pardons are traditionally used to try to right injustices; that couldn’t be further from the case tonight. The message Trump has sent tonight is clear: no matter how awful your crime was, justice does not apply to you if you are loyal to him.”