Trump Acts Confused When Pressed About Ghislaine Maxwell Pardon

Donald Trump had a bizarre reaction when he was asked if he might pardon convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell ― the former girlfriend of Jeffrey Epstein. He acted like he was completely unaware of her or her case.

On Monday, the Supreme Court rejected Maxwell’s appeal of her 20-year sentence for helping recruit underage girls for Epstein.

Considering Trump was friends for a time with Epstein, and that he once wished Maxwell “well,” it seems natural that reporters might ask if he planned to pardon her now that the Supreme Court has declined to hear her case.

And that’s exactly what CNN’s Kaitlan Collins did on Monday.

Although Trump has been trying to downplay the Epstein files ever since Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly told him that his name came up multiple times in the documents, his response to Collins was strange, as he feigned complete cluelessness about Maxwell’s case.

After Collins explained to Trump that the Supreme Court’s decision means a presidential pardon is the only way to shorten her sentence, the president asked, “Who are we talking about?”

When Collins answered and said Maxwell’s name, Trump acted like he was hearing the name of a forgotten high school classmate for the first time in decades.

“You know, I haven’t heard the name in so long. I can say this, that I’d have to take a look at it. I would have to take a look. Did they reject that?” Trump asked, before suggesting that, sure, he might consider a pardon.

“Well, I’ll take a look at it. I’ll speak to the DOJ,” Trump said. “I wouldn’t consider it or not consider — I don’t know anything about it. I will speak to the DOJ.”

Collins asked why Maxwell might deserve a pardon, prompting Trump to note that “a lot of people have asked me for pardons,” and mentioned rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, who was sentenced last week to four years in prison.

Collins noted that Maxwell “was convicted of child sex trafficking,” but Trump didn’t seem like that was a dealbreaker for him.

“Yeah, I mean, I’m going to have to take a look at it,” Trump replied. “I’d have to ask DOJ. I didn’t know they rejected it. I didn’t know she was even asking for it, frankly.”

Here’s a clip of the exchange:

Considering Trump’s long history with Maxwell and Epstein, many people on social media were very skeptical about his seeming cluelessness.