Trump keeps promise to libertarians, announces full pardon for Ross Ulbricht

Donald Trump announced a full and unconditional pardon for Ross Ulbricht, the creator of Silk Road. Ulbricht had received two life sentences and forty years in prison without the possibility of parole. Trump had promised to pardon Ulbricht during the Libertarian Party's convention in May 2024.

Trump communicated the news through his Truth Social account, where he assured the conviction against the Austin native was disproportionate.

"I just called the mother of Ross William Ulbricht to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly, it was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross. The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me. He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous!" the president said.

Some high-profile names such as Senator Rand Paul, Congressman Thomas Massie and former Attorney General Kenneth Starr spoke out against the sentence Ulbricht received in 2015. He even created a website where he gathered more than 600,000 signatures calling for his release.

Ulbricht wrote a letter to President Joe Biden in 2022, assuring him that he was no longer "the man who could break the law and defraud so many people."

When Trump went to ask for the libertarian vote in May 2024, he encountered an initially hostile reaction from those present. However, everything changed when he promised to pardon Ross.

The Ross Ulbricht case

Ulbricht was arrested at age 29 by the FBI two years after he founded the Silk Road website. This online marketplace operated on the dark web and allowed the buying and selling of goods and services, many of them illegal, according to government charges.

Ulbricht, who operated under the pseudonym "Dread Pirate Roberts," was indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering, computer hacking and narcotics trafficking.

"The FBI arrested Ulbricht and seized his laptop on October 1, 2013. A judge sentenced Ulbricht to life in prison for drug trafficking, computer hacking, and money laundering in 2015. The Silk Road generated hundreds of millions of dollars in sales and more than $13 million dollars worth of Bitcoin in commissions. On November 3, 2020, law enforcement seized over $1 billion worth of digital currency from this case," the FBI's website reads about his case.

According to Ross' website, his sentence was far superior to what the others involved in the case received, also stressing that he was convicted of non-violent offenses and that it was his first offense.

"The average prison sentence all the other defendants related to the case received is six years, including the actual drug sellers, the men who helped run Silk Road, and the men behind Silk Road 2.0, a larger replica. All but one are free today," the Free Ross site explains.

The Libertarian Party's response

The Libertarian Party expressed gratitude to Trump for his pardon. The party published a lengthy post on its X account, where they spoke of a "promise kept" by Trump.

"We are proud to announce today that because of the influence, the impact and the power that the party can wield, Ross Ulbricht once more walks in the light of liberty, outside of a cell, pardoned by President Trump," the party said on the social media platform.

"Ross, congratulations to you and your family. God bless you and keep you safe in your new found freedom. On behalf of the Libertarian Party, we are gifting you with an honorary lifetime membership. Thank you to Pres. Trump for following through on your promise. This is an incredible moment in Libertarian history," Angela McArdle, chair of the Libertarian National Committee, added.