President-elect Donald Trump said Monday he would consider pardoning New York City Mayor Eric Adams, saying he believes the mayor was treated “pretty unfairly.”
He said he would have to look more into the “facts” of the case against Mr. Adams, but that he would consider pardoning him.
“I would certainly look at it,” he said at a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.
Mr. Adams was indicted in September on fraud and bribery charges. Prosecutors alleged that he took foreign donations and travel perks for doing favors in return. He pleaded not guilty.
Mr. Trump said that he predicted “lightheartedly” that Mr. Adams would be indicted after he started making comments against the influx of migrants into the city.
“I said he was going to be indicted, and a few months later, he was indicted,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Trump has empathized with Mr. Adams’ situation before. While at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York City in October, Mr. Trump wished the mayor good luck.
“I’d like to poke some fun at Eric, but I’m going to be nice,” he said at the dinner. “I just want to be nice because I know what it’s like to be persecuted by the DOJ for speaking out against open borders. We were persecuted, and I was persecuted, and so were you, Eric.”
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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