In the event that he wins the forthcoming presidential election and retakes the White House, former President Donald Trump has now reportedly expressed interest in pardoning Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks.
Before his speech at the Libertarian National Convention, the host of the TimcastIRL podcast, Tim Pool, inquired explicitly about Assange from Trump.
“Well I’m going to talk about that today [during my speech] and we’re going to give it very serious consideration, and we’re going to have a couple of other things to say in the speech that I think you’re going to love,” Trump said in response to the question.
Assange, who is currently incarcerated in Belmarsh Prison in the United Kingdom, has been recently granted the right to appeal his extradition to the United States, where he is facing charges under the Espionage Act of 1917.
The charges are the result of WikiLeaks’ publication of thousands of classified U.S. military documents concerning the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts nearly 15 years ago.
Prosecutors in the United States contend that Assange assisted Chelsea Manning, a whistleblower and intelligence analyst for the U.S. Army, in the theft and disclosure of classified information.
Assange secured a significant legal victory by successfully appealing extradition to the High Court in London after the U.S. prosecution failed to provide the necessary assurances as required by the judges.
Trump discussed the potential of utilizing his clemency powers to influence other high-profile cases during his speech on Saturday. He made a pledge to forgive his supporters who invaded the Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
[READ MORE: Trump Hush Money Comes To A Close]
