Former Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., has recommended to President Donald Trump that he grant Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., clemency after the congressman pleaded guilty to campaign finance fraud.
Issa, who is considering running for Hunter's seat, told The San Diego Union-Tribune that Trump should consider commuting the congressman's sentence if he is given prison time in order to save on the cost of imprisoning him.
"It's not my decision. It's the president's decision," Issa said. "But I would certainly say the commuting of sentencing ... has a certain ability to balance the public good. Are we better off spending $60,000 a year to put him behind bars or are we better off with him doing community service and going on with his life with the likelihood of him committing a crime in the future being pretty low?"
Hunter and his wife were indicted for misusing hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign funds for their own personal use, including family vacations, groceries, games, and the congressman's extramarital affairs. Although Hunter initially denied the charges, he eventually changed his plea to guilty.
Former San Diego councilman Carl DeMaio, another Republican who is one of the frontrunners for Hunter's seat, said Trump's intervention would be inappropriate.
"No, it would not be appropriate because at some point we have to expect that our politicians are going to be held accountable for their mistakes," he told the Union-Tribune. "With accountability should come some form of punishment. To commute or pardon would send the wrong message to the American people that politicians get treated differently and aren't subject to the same accountability as the rest of us."
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