ADX Florence
The following story came to my attention yesterday: that President Trump is considering pardons for participants involved in a plot to kidnap Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer. In comments at a swearing-in ceremony for the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro.
See “Trump weighs pardons of people convicted for Whitmer’s 2020 kidnapping plot,” by Amanda Friedman, Politico, May 28, 2025
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/28/trump-whitmer-kidnapping-pardon-00372633
“Trump,” it is noted in the article, “insinuated that the trial had not been handled correctly by the legal system.”
“I will look at it — take a look at it,” he said when asked if he is considering pardons. “It’s been brought to my attention, I did watch the trial. It looked to me like somewhat of a railroad job, I’ll be honest with you. It looked to me like some people said some stupid things.”
“They were drinking and I think they said stupid things but I’ll take a look at that, and a lot of people are asking me that question from both sides actually,” he continued. “A lot of people think they got railroaded.”
The leaders of the kidnapping plot, Barry Croft Jr. and Adam Fox, were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to abduct the governor from her vacation home. Croft, who also faced weapons charges, received a prison sentence of nearly 20 years. Fox was sentenced to 16 years.
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This brings to mind (mine) the following post of mine:
“British Man Sentenced to 40 Years in Al Qaeda Plot”
It concerns the case of Minh Quang Pham. He is incarcerated in ADX Florence, the supermax prison in Colorado. His release date is March 27, 2051.
Note what Trump says: “A lot of people think they got railroaded.” This is Trump’s way of (i.e., Trumpian) dissembling.
Pham, an operative for Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Yemen, agreed to carry out an attack targeting Americans and Israelis at Heathrow Airport in London.
He never carried out the attack.
Pham pleaded guilty to three terrorism-related charges and was sentenced to 40 years in May 2016. His lawyer had asked the judge to impose a 30-year sentence, the minimum.
One commentator who read my post wrote: “The minimum sentence was 30 years. I would have given him 50. In any event, it is good to know that when I’m flying overseas in the future, this bad ass will be in jail.”
There was little sympathy for Mr. Pham.
He did some “stupid things.” (Read my post for more details about how he got involved in the purported plot and then desisted.)
He did not have a Donald J. Trump to advocate for him.
— posted by Roger W. Smith
May 29, 2025
