Trump to pardon ‘very, very important’ person, but not Edward Snowden

US President Donald Trump reportedly said that he would pardon a "very, very important" person on August 18, adding that it wouldn’t be whistleblower Edward Snowden or former national security adviser Michael Flynn. According to media reports, he declined to divulge any further details on his decision, apart from confirming that it wouldn’t be Snowden or Flynn.

"Doing a pardon tomorrow on someone who is very, very important," Trump told reporters on Air Force One.

Earlier on August 15, Trump said that he was considering a pardon for Snowden, who leaked highly classified information from the National Security Agency in 2013 revealing numerous surveillance programs. The American whistleblower is currently at an unknown location in Russia since he was granted the right of asylum after his US passport was revoked. 

Trump’s comment on Snowden marked a reversal from his earlier stance that the whistleblower was “a spy who should be executed”. He told a news conference at Trump National Golf Club, Bedminster, that he wasn’t “aware of the Snowden situation”, but assured that he is going to “start looking at it”.

“I mean, I’ve seen people that are very conservative and very liberal, and they agree on the same issue; they agree both ways. I’m going to take a look at that very strongly, Edward Snowden,” he said.

Read: Michelle Obama Slams Trump At DNC, Says He Is The 'wrong President' For US

Read: Donald Trump Administration Is Closely Watching 'terrible Situation' In Belarus

Commuted Roger Stone's sentence

In July, Trump used his presidential power to commute the sentence of longtime friend and adviser Roger Stone, who was convicted on the charges brought as part of Mueller’s report, based on Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Trump’s informal adviser had denied any wrongdoing and called all the charges politically motivated but his lawyers had failed to call any witnesses in his defence.

“Roger Stone is a victim of the Russia Hoax that the Left and its allies in the media perpetuated for years in an attempt to undermine the Trump Presidency,” Trump’s press secretary had said in a statement while announcing Executive Grant of Clemency.

Read: China Accuses US Of Pursuing 'digital Gunboat Diplomacy' Over Trump's ByteDance Order

Read: Kamala Harris' Eligibility Issue A 'non-starter', Says Trump Campaign Adviser