(CNN)Several dozen of President Donald Trump’s final slate of more than 100 pardons and commutations will be doled out to individuals whose cases have been championed by criminal justice reform advocates, a source close to the process tells CNN.
Trump’s final acts of clemency come after a scramble in recent days among criminal justice reform advocates and several White House officials to finalize the list and convince Trump to approve the actions. These pardons will undoubtedly be overshadowed by the slew of controversial ones Trump is also expected to issue in the same final batch on Tuesday.
During the President’s final hours in office, there is a frantic scramble happening behind the scenes on whether to grant former campaign strategist Steve Bannon a pardon as Trump finalizes the list with his attorneys and top aides. One concern is Bannon’s possible connection to the January 6 riot of Trump supporters at the US Capitol, according to a source familiar with the discussions.
Throughout the day, Trump has continued to contemplate pardons that aides believed were settled, including for his former strategist.
Trump has continued to go back and forth on it into Tuesday night, sources told CNN.
While outgoing Presidents typically issue a raft of 11th-hour pardons before leaving office, Trump has proven more willing to use his pardon power to brazenly reward political loyalty, the wealthy and well-connected and those who did not cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.
According to three people familiar with the matter, the clemency actions will include white-collar criminals, high-profile rappers and others but — as of now — is not expected to include Trump himself.
The January 6 riots that led to Trump’s second impeachment have complicated his desire to pardon himself, his kids and personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, and a source close to the process said those are no longer expected.
