Former advisor to President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, Roger Stone, was indicted and convicted for lying to Congress and obstructing justice.
On Tuesday, the Department of Justice recommended Stone be sentenced to seven to nine years in prison. The recommendation was signed by the case's top prosecutor.
That's when things got...interesting.
The President railed against the recommendation on Twitter Tuesday night.
That's when the Justice Department mysteriously backtracked on the sentence recommendation it had issued to Judge Amy Berman Jackson only one day before, saying:
"The Department was shocked to see the sentencing recommendation," the official told CNN. "The Department believes the recommendation is extreme and excessive and is grossly disproportionate to Stone's offenses."
The department later recommended a sentence of three to four years. Officials also claimed the decision was made before Trump's tweets.
Since that announcement, all four career special prosecutors on Stone's case have resigned in response to the Justice Department's rebuke.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) criticized the decision, and predicted that the DOJ, under the leadership of Attorney General William Barr, would reward Stone for crimes that benefitted Trump.
Shortly after, Stone sent a letter to the Inspector General for the Justice Department seeking answers.
Schumer wrote:
"The American people must have confidence that justice in this country is dispensed impartially. That confidence cannot be sustained if the president or his political appointees are permitted to interfere in prosecution and sentencing recommendations in order to protect their friends and associates. I urge you to conduct an expedited review of this urgent matter and issue a public report with your findings and recommendations as soon as possible."
With DOJ announcing the reversal right after Trump's criticisms, people agree that the administration is working to give Roger Stone a sweetheart sentence thanks to his allegiance to the President.
It looks more and more like Democratic lawmakers were right in their prediction that a failure to convict Trump in the Senate's impeachment trial would only embolden him to further corrupt Democratic norms.
Check your voter registration status here.
@cynthiaerivo/Instagram
