In pardoning reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, Trump taps into a sense of persecution felt by his conservative Christian base

Yahoo

2 days ago

President Donald Trump has never met Todd Chrisley, the reality TV star that he pardoned on May 27, 2025, along with Chrisley's wife, Julie.
But the pair have much in common.
Both are admired by their fans for their brash personas and salty ripostes. Both enjoy lavish lifestyles: Trump is known for his real estate deals and rococo White House redecoration, and Chrisley for his entrepreneurial skill and acquisitions of sprawling properties.
Quick-tempered tycoons, they live large and keep score – especially when people cross them.
And maybe most importantly, both have run into legal trouble with Georgia prosecutors. In 2019, The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia indicted the Chrisleys for fraud and tax evasion, and the Fulton County district attorney filed charges against Trump in 2023.
In 2022, Todd and Julie Chrisley were tried in Fulton County, found guilty and sentenced to 12- and seven-year sentences, respectively. A year later, a Fulton County grand jury indicted Trump as part of an alleged conspiracy to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia, a case that's currently in limbo.
After the Chrisleys went to prison, their daughter Savannah began campaigning for their release. Her efforts to win over prominent conservatives – including her outspoken support for Trump – led to a prime-time appearance at the 2024 Republican National Convention.
'My family has been persecuted by rogue prosecutors due to our public profile and conservative beliefs,' she told the delegates and a television audience of 15 million viewers.
Turning an insult into an accolade, she claimed prosecutors had called them the 'Trumps of the South.'
Her framing of her parents' imprisonment aligns with Trump's broader campaign narrative of victimization, redemption and retribution, which critics say he has continued to promote and carry out during his second term.
Preaching perfection
Like Trump, who starred on 'The Apprentice' for 11 years, the Chrisleys had their own reality television show.
'Chrisley Knows Best' aired on USA Network from 2014 to 2023. I'm familiar with the Chrisleys because I wrote about Todd in a 2018 book I co-edited on religion and reality television. The show was particularly popular among viewers in their 30s, who were fascinated by the Chrisleys' extravagant lifestyle and Todd's over-the-top personality.
The self-proclaimed 'patriarch of perfection,' Todd flew twice a month to Los Angeles from Atlanta, and later Nashville, to have his hair cut and highlighted. He spoke freely about using Botox and invited viewers into his room-size closet where his clothes were organized by color. No matter the time of day, Todd was camera-ready: buffed, manicured and dressed in designer clothes.
The family enjoyed all the trappings of success: fancy cars, a palatial home and expensive vacations. Yet, in almost every episode, Todd made clear that his life, and theirs by extension, centered on family, religion and responsibility. In fact, many episodes revolved around Todd's efforts to promote these values through his parenting lessons.
On the one hand, Todd tried to teach responsibility and the value of hard work to his five children. On the other hand, he bribed and cajoled them into doing what he wanted. Todd seemed to have it both ways: His strictness and traditional values appealed to Christian viewers, but his sass and cussing won over secular audiences.
Yet sometimes his words rang hollow. Todd talked a lot about work, but viewers rarely saw him at a job. He frequently quoted the Bible, but audiences seldom saw him in church. He extolled family, but a few years into the series, his two older children, Lindsie and Kyle, disappeared from the show.
In 2023, the series disappeared, too. By then, the Chrisleys were in prison.
Trump knows best
On the day of his inauguration, when Trump pardoned or commuted the sentences of the roughly 1,500 people involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, he vowed to 'take appropriate action to correct past misconduct by the Federal Government related to the weaponization of law enforcement.'
According to the president, the imprisonment of Todd and Julie Chrisley and his pardoning of them is just that.
'Your parents are going to be free and clean and I hope that we can do it by tomorrow,' Trump told Savannah Chrisley in a recorded phone conversation. 'They've been given a pretty harsh treatment based on what I'm hearing.'
Trump's pardons, which have freed a number of conservatives convicted of fraud, may stem from his belief that he and many others have been falsely accused and persecuted by the elite, liberal establishment.
But the pardons also strike home for his right-wing religious supporters, many of whom think that Democrats will do anything to quash their faith, including using the justice system to specifically target Christians.
'We live in a nation founded on freedom, liberty and justice for all. Justice is supposed to be blind. But today, we have a two-faced justice system,' Savannah Chrisley said during her RNC speech. 'Look at what they are doing to countless Christians and conservatives that the government has labeled them extremists or even worse.'
While those claims have been disputed, eradicating anti-Christian bias, at home and abroad, has nevertheless become a centerpiece of Trump's policies during his second term.
The lawyers who prosecuted the Chrisleys had a different perspective. They called Todd and Julie 'career swindlers who have made a living by jumping from one fraud scheme to another, lying to banks, stiffing vendors and evading taxes at every corner,' and whose reputations were 'based on the lie that their wealth came from dedication and hard work.'
The couple were ultimately found guilty of defrauding Atlanta-area banks of US$36 million by using falsified papers to apply for mortgages, obtaining false loans to repay older loans, and not repaying those loans. They also were convicted of hiding their true income from the IRS and owing $500,000 in back taxes.
At his sentencing, Todd said that he intended to pay it all back. At a press conference after his pardon, he said he was convicted for something he did not do.
In the days since their release, the Chrisleys announced they were filming a new reality show, which will air on Lifetime. The series will focus on the couple's legal struggles, imprisonment, pardon and reunification.
Thanks to the constitutional protections of the presidency, Trump's reelection has shielded him from ongoing federal criminal prosecution. And now, thanks to the stroke of Trump's pen, the 'Trumps of the South' are back in business, too.
This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Diane Winston, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Read more:
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Trump's Jan. 6 pardon order 'flies in the face of the facts' of violent insurrection, retired federal judge explains
Fulton County charges Donald Trump with racketeering, other felonies – a Georgia election law expert explains 5 key things to know
Diane Winston does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.