Inside the furious Republican-led effort to STOP Trump from pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell
While the president has acknowledged his ability to pardon Maxwell for her child sex trafficking crimes, he has not signaled he intends to do so.
But after Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met for interviews with Maxwell in Florida last month, there are concerns that her bid for a pardon might be gaining traction.
One senator, who requested anonymity to speak with The Hill about a potential pardon, said that Maxwell has an incentive to 'lie' to get her sentence reduced.
This lawmaker warned against trusting anything Maxwell says in her effort for a pardon.
'It's ridiculous that he would consider shortening a sentence for somebody who aided and abetted sexual trafficking as she did,' said the Republican senator.
The lawmaker described that argument as specious: 'She's trafficking underage children. I can't imagine anything she could say could nullify her heinous crimes.'
Maxwell's attorney David Oscar Markus sent a letter to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee saying that if his client receives clemency for her 20-year prison sentence, she would go before Congress to testify 'openly and honestly' about Epstein.
The panel's Chairman, Rep. James Comer, agreed to postpone Maxwell's testimony, which was initially scheduled for August 11 because her lawyers want to wait until after the Supreme Court considers their appeal of her 2021 conviction.
The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) did not publicly specify reasoning for the transfer.
Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota agreed that Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi would need a strong justification for pardoning Maxwell – or even commuting her sentence.
He said, according to The Hill, that it would be 'difficult' to reason granting Maxwell any pardon or leniency considering the severity of her crimes.
Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her crimes, which include sex trafficking conspiracy and enticing and transporting minors to engage in criminal sexual activity.
A senior White House official told the Daily Mail on July 15: 'There have been no discussions or consideration of a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, and there never will be.'
The whole saga started on July 6 when the Justice Department and FBI released a memo saying that it found in its review of the Epstein files that the child sex criminal died by suicide in prison on August 10, 2019.
It also concluded that there was no 'client list' and said no one else would be charged in relation to the crimes.
This sent MAGA circles into immediate fury, with some claiming a cover-up was underway and others calling for AG Bondi to be removed from her position.
Deputy AG Blanche was subsequently tasked with two-days of talks with Maxwell to find out what the Epstein confidante knew in an effort to quell Trump's base.
It's unclear yet what has come from those interviews.
Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she has 'no idea what to expect out' of the conversations between Maxwell and the DOJ.
'Just because she comes and gives testimony doesn't necessarily mean [she] should be given any kind of a pardon, I don't think,' she added. 'There's a lot more that has to be looked at.'
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