facebooktwittertelegramwhatsapp
copy short urlprintemail
+ A
A -
webmaster
AFP
Washington
President Donald Trump on Thursday brazenly ignored his attorney general’s plea to stop tweeting about ongoing court cases, again expressing displeasure with how his longtime ally Roger Stone is being treated in court.
The president questioned the “fairness” in a tweet to his nearly 73 million followers, right as a Washington, DC, federal judge was opening Stone’s sentencing hearing.
Roger Stone was jailed for 40 months on Thursday for impeding a congressional investigation, in a case that ignited a firestorm over the US president’s political interference in the justice system.
“They say Roger Stone lied to Congress. OH, I see,” Trump tweeted before listing cases involving opponents like Hillary Clinton that ended without prison terms. “FAIRNESS?” Trump asked.
The tweet demonstrated Trump’s disregard for the outcry sparked by his habit of tweeting about the multiple court cases and investigations plaguing his administration.
Opponents have long accused Trump of breaking the long-held norms of separation between the White House and the judiciary -- allegedly with the aim of protecting himself and his allies.
Stone, a veteran Republican operative and one of Trump’s oldest confidants, was convicted in November of lying to Congress, tampering with a witness and obstructing the House investigation into whether the Trump campaign conspired with Russia to cheat in the 2016 election.
“The truth still exists,” said US District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson as she handed down the sentence. “The truth, still matters. Roger Stone’s insistence that it doesn’t, his belligerence, his pride in his own lies are a threat to our most fundamental institutions, to the very foundation of our democracy.”
copy short url   Copy
21/02/2020
1555