Julian Assange says he was promised a Trump pardon if he would lie about Russia's DNC hacking

[fleur-de-lisa]

Source: Raw Story

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange told a British court on Tuesday that he had been promised a pardon by people close to President Donald Trump.

Assange made the remarks while appearing at a pretrial hearing via teleconference.

Courtroom reporter James Doleman broke the news on Twitter. According to Doleman, Assange said that the pardon was conditional on him publicly announcing that Russia had nothing to do with the attack on the 2016 election.

In 2017, a The Wall Street Journal report said that Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) attempted to broker a deal for a pardon or clemency between the White House and Assange.

Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/2020/02/julian-assange-says-he-was-promised-a-trump-pardon-if-he-would-lie-about-russias-dnc-hacking/

[lunasun]

1. Kick thanks

Trump!

[Guilded Lilly]

2. The corruption tsunami continues.

[fleur-de-lisa]

3. Daily Beast is reporting on this also:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-offered-assange-pardon-if-he-covered-up-russian-hack-court-hears?via=twitter_page

Edward Fitzgerald, Assange’s lawyer, said on Wednesday that a message had been passed on to Assange by former Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher.

Fitzgerald said a statement produced by Assange’s lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, showed “Mr Rohrabacher going to see Mr Assange and saying, on instructions from the president, he was offering a pardon or some other way out, if Mr Assange... said Russia had nothing to do with the DNC leaks.”

District Judge Vanessa Baraitser, who is presiding over the pre-trial hearing in Westminster Magistrates’ Court, said the allegation should be admissible during the extradition hearing, which is due to begin next week.

If he appears in court in the U.S., Assange would face 18 charges including conspiracy to commit computer intrusion. The total jail time for all charges would be 175 years.

[herding cats]

4. As is The Guardian now.

Donald Trump 'offered Julian Assange a pardon if he denied Russia link to hack'

Donald Trump offered Julian Assange a pardon if he would say Russia was not involved in leaking Democratic party emails, a court in London has been told.

The extraordinary claim was made at Westminster magistrates court before the opening next week of Assange’s legal battle to block attempts to extradite him to the US.

Assange’s barrister, Edward Fitzgerald QC, referred to evidence alleging that the former US Republican congressman Dana Rohrabacher had been to see Assange, now 48, while he was still in the Ecuadorian embassy in August 2017.

A statement from Assange’s lawyer Jennifer Robinson shows “Mr Rohrabacher going to see Mr Assange and saying, on instructions from the president, he was offering a pardon or some other way out, if Mr Assange … said Russia had nothing to do with the DNC leaks”, Fitzgerald told Westminster magistrates court.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/feb/19/donald-trump-offered-julian-assange-pardon-russia-hack-wikileaks

[JudyM]

5. Lovely timing.

[FM123]

6. I wish this was front page news at the start of impeachment....

[riversedge]

17. Repugs would not have cared.

[lordsummerisle]

7. k&r n/t

[abakan]

8. To me Assange has

equal credibility with thedump. I don't believe either one. Assange is still trying to find a way to get out of jail free.

[VarryOn]

30. I'm with you...

Assange is vile. I don't think he differentiates between a Republican or a Democrat. While I can't figure who he's for, e's definitely anti-American. He works for someone; I just can't figure who. No doubt, someone with an eye-watering amount of money..

[Iliyah]

9. And he's talking now? . . .

[LiberalArkie]

10. {The Guardian} Donald Trump 'offered Julian Assange a pardon if he denied Russia link to hack'.

{Evidently the source Story)

Donald Trump offered Julian Assange a pardon if he would say Russia was not involved in leaking Democratic party emails, a court in London has been told.

The extraordinary claim was made at Westminster magistrates court before the opening next week of Assange’s legal battle to block attempts to extradite him to the US.

Assange’s barrister, Edward Fitzgerald QC, referred to evidence alleging that the former US Republican congressman Dana Rohrabacher had been to see Assange, now 48, while he was still in the Ecuadorian embassy in August 2017.

A statement from Assange’s lawyer Jennifer Robinson shows “Mr Rohrabacher going to see Mr Assange and saying, on instructions from the president, he was offering a pardon or some other way out, if Mr Assange … said Russia had nothing to do with the DNC leaks”, Fitzgerald told Westminster magistrates court.


Snip

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/feb/19/donald-trump-offered-julian-assange-pardon-russia-hack-wikileaks

{it seems that Assange did what Rohrabacher said to do, but Trump failed to follow through.}

[davsand]

11. Wouldn't there have to be a US conviction in order for there to be a pardon?

The orange anus can't pardon a British conviction, and Assange is currently fighting an extradition to the US for a trial.

At the moment, there can be no pardon.







Laura

[localroger]

19. Nixon was not convicted but Ford pardoned him /nt

[LudwigPastorius]

24. It's a 'Get Out of Jail Free' card that Assange could use if, and when, ...

he is extradited and facing espionage charges in the U.S.

[mpcamb]

12. Rohrabacher! That Putin-loving crook got voted out in 2018!

On June 15, 2016, Republican congressman Kevin McCarthy told a group of Republicans, "There's two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump. Swear to God."

Kevin McCarthy! House Minority Leader Kevin Freakin' McCarthy said that!

[Scarsdale]

26. When he said that, Paul Ryan

hushed him up, saying "Keep that in the family"

[wiggs]

13. That sounds....big. nt

[rogue emissary]

14. Honestly asking,

Doesn't he deny or down play Russian hacking into U.S. elections?

[RealityChik]

15. He's just another rat trying to abandon ship!

...and doing whatever it takes in desperation to save his own ass. I can't imagine Trump pardoning any of his major players. Doing so nullifies the right to claim the 5th in future trials. To lie under oath pretty much condemns them all to life in prison. People keep forgetting that even though the Mueller Report did not get Trump removed, it provides all the evidence needed to convict if these guys lie.

Trump knows this. He will continue to dangle pardons to continue stoking the pardon hope to win the silence of those who could do him and his family the most damage!

[Blue_Tires]

16. Where is the "But Julian is a real journalist!" -crowd now?

[Zorro]

18. JPR

[dewsgirl]

27. Yeah right.

[riversedge]

20. Repugs will be silent.

[amuse bouche]

21. He's Australian. How can Dump pardon him?

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

23. "y're pardoned, mate!" - see, it's easy.

Courts in other countries may not be totally convinced that Trump's pardon is worth much.

[LudwigPastorius]

25. Assange is facing 18 indictments in the U.S. under the Espionage Act of 1917.

If extradited, tried, and convicted, he would face a possible sentence of 175 years in prison.

A presidential pardon would make that all go away before he even set foot in a federal court.

[amuse bouche]

29. Wow...Thanks

[ffr]

22. The truth finally comes out.

Any of these people who acted on behalf of Russian interests should be hauled before a tribunal. Treason is not acceptable and unpardonable.

[JohnnyRingo]

28. Rohrabacher: Putin's Congressman.

Assange has no credibility, but that certainly adds up.

[SunSeeker]

31. K & R for exposure.

[Judi Lynn]

32. The White House denies Julian Assange's pardon claim. Here's what we know about it.

The Washington Post:

The White House denies Julian Assange’s pardon claim. Here’s what we know about it.
Aaron Blake 8 hrs ago

A day after President Trump issued executive clemency to 11 people including former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, another potential Trump pardon is in the news.

This one: For Julian Assange.

Assange’s lawyers claimed in a London court Wednesday that they would provide evidence that then-Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) promised Assange a pardon or some other favor related to a U.S. prosecution if he provided information absolving Russia of responsibility for hacking Democratic Party emails in 2016.

Assange’s lawyer, Edward Fitzgerald, said he had a statement from another Assange lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, that shows “Mr. Rohrabacher going to see Mr. Assange and saying, on instructions from the president, he was offering a pardon or some other way out, if Mr. Assange … said Russia had nothing to do with the DNC leaks.”

More:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/the-white-house-denies-julian-assanges-pardon-claim-heres-what-we-know-about-it/ar-BB10ayp1?li=BBnb7Kz