Celebrity News January 08, 2026
President Trump Responds After Diddy Requests a Pardon
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President Donald Trump is weighing in on Sean “Diddy” Combs' request for a pardon.
The president told The New York Times that he received a letter from the disgraced music mogul asking for a pardon. According to the paper, he is not considering granting the request.
Last month, Combs was found guilty on two counts of engaging in transportation to engage in prostitution, but not guilty on alleged racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking.
He is currently serving time at Fort Dix Federal Institute in New Jersey, and is set to be released June 4, 2028.
In an interview with CNN in August, Combs’ lawyer Nicole Westmoreland spoke about the team reaching out to President Trump.
“It’s my understanding that we’ve reached out and had conversations in reference to a pardon,” she said.
When asked how Diddy is feeling about his chances of a presidential pardon, Westmoreland said the rapper “is a very hopeful person and I believe that he remains hopeful.”
President Trump also talked about the pardon rumors during an interview with Newsmax in August.
Diddy Nearly Unrecognizable in New Video Behind Bars
View StoryReferring to the mixed verdict, Trump said, “Well he was essentially, sort of, half-innocent. I don’t know what they do that he’s still in jail or something. He was celebrating a victory, but I guess it wasn’t as good a victory.”
According to Trump, they were “friendly” acquaintances until he pursued politics. He explained, “I was very friendly with him, get along with him great, seemed like a nice guy, didn’t know him well. But when I ran for office, he was very hostile. But it was hard, we’re human beings and we don’t like to have things cloud our judgment, right? But when you knew someone and you were fine and then you run for office and he made some terrible statements… So, I don’t know, it makes it more difficult to do.”
