Trump Weighs Diddy Pardon—But Says Past Criticism “Makes It Harder”
Donald Trump hasn’t ruled out the idea of granting a pardon to embattled music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs — but says it’s not so simple.
Speaking at a press event earlier this week, Trump was asked point-blank whether he would consider a pardon for the Bad Boy Records founder. His response was both cryptic and revealing.
“Well, he was essentially, I guess, sort of half innocent,” Trump said, raising eyebrows. “I don’t know what they do. He’s still in jail or something?”
Trump then turned reflective, noting that while he and Diddy once had a cordial relationship, that changed after Trump entered the political arena.
“He was very hostile. He said some not-so-nice things about me,” Trump said. “It’s hard, you know—we’re human beings, right? And we don’t like to have things cloud our judgment.”
While he didn’t go so far as to deny the possibility of a pardon, Trump admitted that Diddy’s past criticism had made the idea more complicated.
“He seemed like a nice guy back in the day,” Trump added. “But you start running for president, and people change. They attack you. It happens.”
The former president has issued numerous high-profile pardons in the past and has indicated that he would consider additional ones if re-elected. However, his comments make clear that personal history plays a role in those decisions.
As for Diddy, who is currently facing multiple lawsuits and investigations related to alleged misconduct, his legal future remains uncertain — and now, so does the prospect of presidential clemency.
