WSJ skewers Trump for pardon of 'crypto pal': 'Presidential leniency can be bought'
Ray Hartmann
October 24, 2025
RAW STORY
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, speaks at the Bitcoin Asia conference, in Hong Kong, China, August 29, 2025. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo
The conservative Wall Street Journal editorial board pulled no punches Friday in castigating President Donald Trump for pardoning "crypto kingpin Changpeng Zhao, who happens to be a Trump family business partner.
The editorial invoked the nation's Founders, suggesting that when it came to making presidential pardons absolute, "Hamilton and Madison might be having second thoughts as they watch President Trump dole out pardons as a form of political legal tender."
Ridiculing Trump for claiming that "a lot of people say that (Zhao) wasn't guilty of anything," the Journal noted:
"One of those people wasn’t Mr. Zhao, unless he was lying when he pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating anti-money laundering laws by not implementing safeguards on Binance, the crypto exchange he founded. The plea agreement he struck with the Justice Department says he turned a blind eye as terrorists, cyber-criminals and foreign adversaries used Binance to embezzle and dodge sanctions."
The Journal didn't spare Trump when it came to his motives.
"Could those lobbying for the Zhao pardon be members of his family and inner circle? Mr. Zhao, who served four months in prison, has since supported the crypto venture World Liberty Financial (WLF), in which a Trump family business entity holds a large stake. WLF was co-founded by Zach Witkoff, the son of Mr. Trump’s special diplomatic envoy. On May 1, Zach Witkoff and the President’s son Eric said Binance had accepted a $2 billion investment from an Abu Dhabi state-backed fund; the investment was made using WLF’s new stablecoin USD1."
And the board added a devastating parting shot.
"Readers can decide if they think the pardon had nothing to do with the investment, but it sure looks like a conflict of interest. A reasonable person would look at this and easily conclude that presidential leniency can be bought."
Ray Hartmann
October 24, 2025
RAW STORY
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, speaks at the Bitcoin Asia conference, in Hong Kong, China, August 29, 2025. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo
The conservative Wall Street Journal editorial board pulled no punches Friday in castigating President Donald Trump for pardoning "crypto kingpin Changpeng Zhao, who happens to be a Trump family business partner.
The editorial invoked the nation's Founders, suggesting that when it came to making presidential pardons absolute, "Hamilton and Madison might be having second thoughts as they watch President Trump dole out pardons as a form of political legal tender."
Ridiculing Trump for claiming that "a lot of people say that (Zhao) wasn't guilty of anything," the Journal noted:
"One of those people wasn’t Mr. Zhao, unless he was lying when he pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating anti-money laundering laws by not implementing safeguards on Binance, the crypto exchange he founded. The plea agreement he struck with the Justice Department says he turned a blind eye as terrorists, cyber-criminals and foreign adversaries used Binance to embezzle and dodge sanctions."
The Journal didn't spare Trump when it came to his motives.
"Could those lobbying for the Zhao pardon be members of his family and inner circle? Mr. Zhao, who served four months in prison, has since supported the crypto venture World Liberty Financial (WLF), in which a Trump family business entity holds a large stake. WLF was co-founded by Zach Witkoff, the son of Mr. Trump’s special diplomatic envoy. On May 1, Zach Witkoff and the President’s son Eric said Binance had accepted a $2 billion investment from an Abu Dhabi state-backed fund; the investment was made using WLF’s new stablecoin USD1."
And the board added a devastating parting shot.
"Readers can decide if they think the pardon had nothing to do with the investment, but it sure looks like a conflict of interest. A reasonable person would look at this and easily conclude that presidential leniency can be bought."
Carl Gibson,
AlterNet
October 23, 2025
FILE PHOTO: Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, speaks at the Bitcoin Asia conference, in Hong Kong, China, August 29, 2025. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo
President Donald Trump recently announced he was officially pardoning Changpeng Zhao, who is the former CEO of cryptocurrency company Binance. One member of his party is now publicly condemning the act.
Politico reported Thursday that after Trump pardoned Zhao — a Chinese-born Canadian resident who is ranked as the 21st richest person in the world with a net worth in excess of $87 billion — Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said it sent "a bad signal."
"I don’t like it,” said Tillis, who is not running for another term next year. "He was convicted. He’s not innocent."
Zhao pleaded guilty in November of 2023 to money laundering charges and agreed to pay $4 billion in penalties. Then-Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said after the plea deal that Binance "allowed money to flow to terrorists, cybercriminals, and child abusers through its platform." Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen said at the time that Zhao's company "gave sanctioned customers unfettered access to American capital and financial services."
However, Zhao also had personal ties to the Trump family. As the Wall Street Journal reported, Binance supported the Trump Organization's World Liberty Financial cryptocurrency venture headed by Donald Trump Jr., which has led to the president's personal net wealth spiking significantly since the start of his second term.
The Senate is currently discussing market structure legislation aimed at regulating the cryptocurrency industry. Some Democrats are arguing for provisions in the bill that would prevent the president and his family from profiting from its crypto business, though Republicans are likely to reject them.
“It’s absolutely corrupt what this president is doing, and none of us should be surprised,” Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) told Politico. “What we’re trying to do in market structure is to keep the Binances of the world outside of the United States market.”
Click here to read Politico's full report.
October 23, 2025
FILE PHOTO: Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, speaks at the Bitcoin Asia conference, in Hong Kong, China, August 29, 2025. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo
President Donald Trump recently announced he was officially pardoning Changpeng Zhao, who is the former CEO of cryptocurrency company Binance. One member of his party is now publicly condemning the act.
Politico reported Thursday that after Trump pardoned Zhao — a Chinese-born Canadian resident who is ranked as the 21st richest person in the world with a net worth in excess of $87 billion — Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said it sent "a bad signal."
"I don’t like it,” said Tillis, who is not running for another term next year. "He was convicted. He’s not innocent."
Zhao pleaded guilty in November of 2023 to money laundering charges and agreed to pay $4 billion in penalties. Then-Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said after the plea deal that Binance "allowed money to flow to terrorists, cybercriminals, and child abusers through its platform." Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen said at the time that Zhao's company "gave sanctioned customers unfettered access to American capital and financial services."
However, Zhao also had personal ties to the Trump family. As the Wall Street Journal reported, Binance supported the Trump Organization's World Liberty Financial cryptocurrency venture headed by Donald Trump Jr., which has led to the president's personal net wealth spiking significantly since the start of his second term.
The Senate is currently discussing market structure legislation aimed at regulating the cryptocurrency industry. Some Democrats are arguing for provisions in the bill that would prevent the president and his family from profiting from its crypto business, though Republicans are likely to reject them.
“It’s absolutely corrupt what this president is doing, and none of us should be surprised,” Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) told Politico. “What we’re trying to do in market structure is to keep the Binances of the world outside of the United States market.”
Click here to read Politico's full report.
No comments:
Post a Comment