President Donald J. Trump pardons former U.S. congressman Duncan Hunter (R-CA), according to a press statement from the White House. Hunter is a convicted felon for using campaign funds for personal expenses. This includes Hunter's PC gaming expenses, spending over $1,500 on Steam games.

Corrupt politician turned campaign funds into Steam credits

In 2016, Duncan Hunter's illegal use of campaign funds for personal use first came to light. A federal investigation followed, revealing more details on Hunter's misuse of funds. The San Diego U.S. Attorney's Office accused him and his wife of conspiring to misuse $250,000 in campaign funds. Furthermore, a federal grand jury indicted the couple on 60 counts of wire fraud, falsifying records, campaign finance violations, and conspiracy.

Apart from spending over $1,500 on PC games, Duncan Hunter and his wife also spent campaign funds to pay $600 to fly a family rabbit by plane. Other personal expenses include personal clothing, donation for their child's school, payment for surgery, travel costs, and groceries, among others.

Then-Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI), stripped him of his committee assignments. Hunter reluctantly agreed to stepping down from his committee assignments.

The couple initially pleaded not guilty in August 2018. In February 2019, federal prosecutors submitted evidence showing that Hunter used some of the campaign funds for five extramarital affairs, one of which was with one of his staffers. His wife pleaded guilty in June, agreeing to testify to court and cooperate with the investigations. On December 3, 2019, Duncan Hunter pleaded guilty to one count of misusing campaign funds. Three days later, he announced that he will be resigning from Congress after the holidays. His resignation came into effect on January 13, 2020.

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A year later, President Trump pardons corrupt congressman Duncan Hunter

Duncan Hunter's corruption struck a nerve with his colleagues in Capitol Hill that Representatives Josh Harder (D-CA) and Max Rose (D-NY) introduced the No Pensions for Corrupt Politicians Act of 2020 last January. If passed into law, Hunter will no longer receive his retirement pension, which is estimated to amount to $32,000 annually, which becomes available to him once he reaches 62.

Regardless of the gravity of his crime, President Trump still decided to pardon the former congressman, just barely a year after pleading guilty in court. Alongside Hunter, Trump also pardoned two other congressmen convicted on corruption charges: Chris Collins (R-NY) and Steve Stockman (R-TX).