“Bannon has been an important leader in the conservative movement and is known for his political acumen,” the White House statement said.
The president also granted a full pardon to rapper Lil Wayne, 38, and a commutation to rapper Kodak Black, 23. They were both prosecuted on federal weapons offenses. Trump also commuted the sentence of a former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who was serving a 28-year prison term on corruption charges.
The alleged scheme, according to the DOJ, provided Kolfage with hundreds of thousands of dollars to “fund his lavish lifestyle.” Other investigators said that they engaged in fraud by allegedly telling donors that they misrepresented the use of their funds.
In December 2018, Kolfage and others created an online crowdfunding campaign via GoFundMe called “We Build the Wall” that raised more than $25 million to build a wall along the border.
The four were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
Bannon in August described his arrest as a “political hit job” and an attempt to create fear in people who support Trump’s efforts to build a U.S.-Mexico border wall.
“Everybody knows I love a fight, and I was called ‘honey badger’ for many years. You know, the honey badger doesn’t give a … So I’m in this for the long haul. I’m in this for the fight. I’m going to continue to fight,” Bannon said in the podcast.
Trump meanwhile said at the time of Bannon’s arrest that he felt “very badly.”
“I haven’t been dealing with him for a long period of time as most of the people in this room know,” he said.