Brian Kelsey
Edited by The Inner Circle LedgerLedger updated Sep 30, 2026
- Status
- Pardon granted
- Clemency
- Pardon · Mar 11, 2025
- People
- Donald Trump
- The case
- Campaign-finance violations; the former Tennessee Republican state senator funneled state campaign money into a 2016 congressional bid.
THE LINK TO TRUMP’S ORBIT
Republican former legislator. No payment is documented.
WHAT THE RECORD SHOWS
Pardoned two weeks into a 21-month prison sentence, AP reported. He had been ordered to report to a federal prison camp in Kentucky on February 24, 2025.
RESPONSE
Kelsey initially called the prosecution a witch hunt and blamed the Biden administration. After the pardon he said Trump had saved him from the “weaponized Biden DOJ,” AP reported.
SOURCES
- Wikipedia: List of people granted executive clemency in the second Trump presidency ↗
- U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Pardon Attorney: Clemency grants by President Donald J. Trump (2025-present) ↗
- CBS News (Associated Press): Trump pardons former Tennessee lawmaker imprisoned in campaign fraud scheme ↗
A connection recorded here is not proof that it bought the outcome. Where a response exists, it is part of the record. How entries are labeled · Submit a correction or response · Download the ledger
