Source: Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead
Posted on 12/13/2020 3:30:18 AM PST by Kaslin
Source: Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead
Mr. President, presidential pardons are reserved for great Americans who made a mistake and have paid their dues to society. Here are two great patriots who fit the bill perfectly.
I'm proud to say they are both my friends. And I'm proud to be fighting for them.
Both men have done great things for America and the American people. They deserve a pardon so they can move on with their lives and legacies.
Let's start with my friend Pete Rose. Pete is one of the greatest baseball players in history. He is beloved for being the greatest hustler in sports history. That's why the media dubbed him "Charlie Hustle." He is one of America's most popular and celebrated athletes.
Pete doesn't just belong in the Baseball Hall of Fame. His bust should be right upfront with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Hank Aaron, Ty Cobb and Cy Young. Pete Rose is baseball.
Here is just a small sampling of the remarkable achievements of baseball's famous "Hit King." Pete has the most hits of all time (4,256), the most games played of all time (3,562), the most at bats (14,053), singles (3,215) and career plate appearances (15,890). He won three World Series rings, three batting titles, one Most Valuable Player award, two Gold Glove awards and the Rookie of the Year award. He made 17 All-Star appearances. In 1999, Pete was voted onto the All-Century Team. Pete Rose is the definition of an American hero.
But Pete made mistakes in his life. He bet on baseball games (although he only bet on his own team). And he pleaded guilty to income tax evasion. He served one month in prison. That was 35 years ago.
We already know that President Trump is a fan of Pete Rose. He tweeted out earlier this year, "GET PETE ROSE INTO THE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME. It's Time!"
A pardon by the president could well propel Pete into the hall. It would be a grand and popular gesture by President Trump.
That brings me to part two. One of my other dear friends deserves a pardon, Mr. President.
While not as famous or celebrated as Pete Rose, the actions of my buddy were certainly selfless, patriotic and priceless to U.S. taxpayers. They resulted in $25 billion in back taxes, fines and penalties refunded to the U.S. Treasury.
My buddy is Brad Birkenfeld. Brad is single-handedly responsible for uncovering the largest and longest-running tax evasion in IRS history. Brad was a successful Swiss private banker, with many of the wealthiest American businessmen and women as his clients. These wealthy Americans were hiding their money offshore, in Swiss banks, to evade U.S. taxes.
In the summer of 2007, after resigning from his comfortable job at UBS in Switzerland, Brad made the decision to voluntarily walk into the DOJ in Washington, D.C., and reveal the numbered accounts of 19,000 Americans hiding over $20 billion at UBS. In one remarkable act, Brad brought down the entire veil of hundreds of years of Swiss banking secrecy.
Brad naturally assumed he would be celebrated, thanked and protected by the U.S. government for risking his life and giving up his lucrative banking career to help the U.S. government collect billions of dollars in stolen money. Instead, the Obama Department of Justice prosecuted Brad and put him in prison for 30 months.
As a result of Brad's testimony and the evidence he handed to the DOJ, not only was $25 billion recovered by the IRS but 100 Swiss banks signed formal agreements with the U.S. government to end their criminal conduct. Three IRS amnesty programs were implemented, resulting in over 100,000 (and counting) U.S. citizens now in tax compliance.
UBS agreed to a deferred prosecution agreement, paid a $780 million fine and agreed to release the names of only 4,700 American tax evaders. Brad kept demanding that all 19,000 names be revealed. Instead of making Brad a national hero, Obama's DOJ forced Brad to accept a charge of conspiracy to commit tax fraud and put him in prison. This was their way of shutting him up.
The U.S. government and the Obama administration scapegoated Brad to protect wealthy tax cheats and powerful political donors to the administration.
It's time to right a wrong, Mr. President. A presidential pardon is requested in order to recognize that our U.S. government, the DOJ and the Obama administration committed a terrible injustice when they put Brad Birkenfeld in prison.
Mr. President, please pardon my two friends, the great American patriots and heroes Pete Rose and Brad Birkenfeld.
Baseball/Pete Rose = deck chairs
Hummm-mmmmm??
The President is 100% right about Pete Rose.
The sports media should acknowledge the error of their ways and elevate Mr. Rose to where he belongs, namely, to a much higher level of respect. He was NOT the ‘predator of little girls’ they made him out to be.
Similarly, the sports media also unfairly trashed Roger Maris and even people like Ty Cobb (according to a recent book, Ty got on the wrong side of a reporter or two and ruining his name - by lying - was payback for them).
No one played the game with such consistent enthusiasm as Pete Rose - ALWAYS 100%; a winner.
I’d rather see Shoeless Joe Jackson in the Hall of Fame before Pete Rose.
I would also suggest that he was an overrated ball player. There’s a big difference between a player who sets records based on talent and focus, and one who sets records simply by hanging around long enough. Most of Rose’s records fall into the latter category — which is how you end up with a guy who has 4,256 career hits and a lifetime batting average that is barely over .300 and isn’t even among the top 150 of all time.
If he pardons pete rose then a life time ban doesnt mean a thing. And the stament “ he only bet on his team”. Thats like saying its not so bad they “ only raped their daughter”.
Ridiculous. I’d rather Trump spend his remaining days figuring out a way to grant protections to gun owners and other patriots who exhibit self defense in the face of leftist violence.
Julian Assange and Edward Snowden. The deep state worked overtime and still does demonizing two guys that were trying to help expose the deep state.
We likely would never have known how deep the deep state really is without these two.
agree. Free Assange and Snowden
BINGO. Why waste time on pardoning a nobody, a sports has-been, do nothing; Brad I can buy.
More important is KEEPING DEMS OUT OF THE WH. I’d like to finish the few years I have left IN LIBERTY, NOT SLAVERY SUBJECT TO EUTHANASIA BECAUSE I’M HIGH RISK, THROUGH NO FAULT OF MY OWN HAVE MULTIPLE HEALTH ISSUES. I’m still capable of standing for my LIBERTY AND SHOOTING FOR IT.
I’d rather see Shoeless Joe Jackson in the Hall of Fame before Pete Rose.
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Is OJ still in the hall of fame!
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