‘What am I, not supposed to have health care?’: Trump pardons GOP congressman who threatened to break reporter ‘like a boy’

Former President Donald Trump has issued a pardon to Michael Grimm, a former Republican representative from New York who was convicted of tax fraud in 2014. Grimm, who served in Congress before his conviction, was among the latest wave of pardons granted by Trump to Republican politicians with criminal records.

According to MSNBC, Grimm’s legal troubles stemmed from his management of a Manhattan restaurant, where he was accused in a 20-count indictment of underreporting nearly $1 million in earnings and reducing payroll taxes through off-the-books payments. He eventually pleaded guilty to a single count of tax fraud and was sentenced to eight months in prison, being released in 2016.

During his time in Congress, Grimm gained notoriety for threatening physical violence against a reporter who questioned him about ongoing criminal investigations. He also faced criticism for his stance on healthcare when, after running on an anti-Affordable Care Act platform, he was questioned about his own government-provided healthcare. “What am I, not supposed to have health care?” Grimm responded, before voting two weeks later to repeal the ACA, which would have denied coverage to millions of Americans.

Trump’s pattern of pardoning convicted Republican politicians continues to grow

The pardon of Grimm adds to Trump’s growing list of clemency grants to Republican congressmen convicted of crimes. Along with Grimm, Trump also pardoned former Connecticut Governor John Rowland, who had served three terms as a Republican congressman before resigning in 2004 amid a corruption scandal.

Rowland’s case was particularly notable, as he faced multiple convictions. After his initial guilty plea and prison sentence in 2004, he was convicted again a decade later for public corruption, including charges of obstructing justice, conspiracy, and violations of campaign finance laws.

The addition of Grimm and Rowland brings the total number of pardoned Republican congressmen under Trump to nine. This number represents the majority of Republican congressmen convicted of felonies in the 21st century, according to GovTrack’s Legislator Misconduct Database.

Trump’s pardons have exclusively benefited Republican politicians, with no Democratic congressmen receiving similar clemency despite some also being convicted of crimes during this period. The administration has also taken steps to abandon corruption cases against other Republican politicians, including dropping a case against a former Republican congressman already found guilty by a jury and halting an investigation into an incumbent Republican congressman.