President Trump shared a post on his Twitter account from a conservative reporter incorrectly claiming former President Obama pardoned Chelsea Manning.
Fox News contributor Katie Pavlich responded to a tweet from Ben Rhodes, a former deputy national security adviser for strategic communications for Obama, who was critical of Trump’s decision to issue a pardon to former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.
“Obama used his pardon and commutation power to give a second chance to people who deserved empathy, not racists who showed none,” Rhodes tweeted Friday.
“Your boss pardoned a traitor who gave U.S. enemies state secrets, he also pardoned a terrorist who killed Americans. Spare us the lecture,” Pavlich said in response to Rhodes.
Your boss pardoned a traitor who gave U.S. enemies state secrets, he also pardoned a terrorist who killed Americans. Spare us the lecture. https://t.co/90jZcPXYqx
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) August 27, 2017
Pavlich claimed Obama pardoned Manning and Oscar Lopez Rivera, a member of a radical Puerto Rican independence group responsible for more than 130 bombings.
But Obama didn’t pardon either of the two, but rather commuted their sentences. Manning served seven years in prison, and Rivera served 35 before they were released.
Trump pardoned Arpaio on Friday. The former sheriff was held in criminal contempt of court after he violated a federal judge’s orders to stop patrols targeting immigrants.
