‘Drug dealers’ or whistleblowers? Report that Trump may pardon Silk Road founder Ulbricht sparks debate over who deserves clemency

The White House counsel’s office is reviewing Ulbricht’s case, and the US president has privately expressed sympathy for the felon, the Daily Beast said, citing several sources familiar with the matter. 

In 2015 Ulbricht received a life sentence without the possibility of parole after being accused of computer fraud, money laundering, and drug charges related to his Silk Road site, which allowed users to purchase drugs anonymously using cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. Ulbricht’s attorneys filed two unsuccessful appeals to overturn the sentence, which is viewed by some activists, commentators, and even lawmakers as inhumane. 

Responding to Tuesday’s Daily Beast report, Michigan’s Libertarian Congressman Justin Amash said that Ulbricht’s sentence is “wildly excessive, and the president should address such disparities in justice.”

As the outgoing president, Trump is expected to grant commutations and pardons before the January 20 inauguration of Democrat Joe Biden. But the news of Ulbricht potentially receiving a get-out-of-jail-free card seems to have polarized the internet, with even some of the president’s supporters arguing that Trump has his pardon priorities all wrong. 

“Trump pardons drug dealer but Snowden remains a wanted criminal,” read an acrid comment from Ian Miles Cheong, a journalist and managing editor at Human Events, in reference to NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. 

Journalist Ryan Saavedra pointed to allegations that Ulbricht plotted to murder several Silk Road users, concluding: “More people need to be locked up, not less.” Ulbricht was not found guilty of murder or attempted murder, as charges related to the disputed incident were dropped by prosecutors.

Others took the opposite position, claiming that Ulbricht was languishing in prison while other candidates for clemency, such as Snowden, were living relatively normal lives.

The debate over who is most deserving of Trump’s mercy appears to have peeved commentator Jordan Schachtel, who made the case that Ulbricht, Snowden, and WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange were all deserving of pardons. 

“You don’t have to agree with people’s ideas to defend their right to live free,” he stressed.

One blue-checkmarked observer highlighted the irony of anti-Trump libertarians begging the president to fulfill their clemency wish lists.

On Monday, rumors spread across social media about Trump’s alleged plans to pardon Assange, but the report appears to have been premature. The push to grant Assange clemency has grown in recent weeks, with even Snowden, who may also be on the president’s pardon radar, urging for the Australian to be released. 

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