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The new season of 60 Minutes kicked off on Sunday with a hidden camera investigation into “pardon brokers” who entice convicts by claiming to sell access to President Donald Trump — for a very steep price.
But correspondent Lesley Stahl found one prominent duo appeared to be peddling nothing but false hope and bogus connections to high-ranking officials. At the same time, Stahl noted several pardons have been issued after crooks made big donations to Trump — leading her to question a Justice Department official whether this was just a coincidence or blatant corruption.
The segment started with Ammon Covino stealthily helping 60 Minutes record an interview with lobbyists Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl, two “Trump loyalists” whom Stahl said pitch themselves as “pardon brokers.”
Stahl pointed out Covino was convicted on illegal wildlife trafficking charges in 2013 and served 23 months; he sought a pardon the old fashioned way — via the government’s three-page application — but was rejected, leading him to seek out Wuhl and Burkman’s help.
Their price tag: $300,000. Wuhl and Burkman told him it would pay for an array of things to help them prod Trump, from buying $10,000 fundraiser tickets to helping them link up with MAGA influencers.
“With this particular White House, you have to put pressure on the president from all directions in a consistent way, to force his hand,” Burkman was seen on video telling Covino and his wife. “We literally want to put the pen in his hand and get him to sign it because he’s tired of hearing about it.”
“I kept saying ‘This feels illegal,’” Ammon told Stahl. But he said when he kept asking his AI model if it was against the law, he was assured it wasn’t.
Stahl also noted what these brokers do “is not illegal, yet none would talk to us.”
Covino listened to their pitch on hidden camera, but rapper Boosie Badazz told 60 Minutes he actually dropped big bucks on Wohl and Burkman’s supposed services. The rapper, who has been convicted for drug possession and for being a felon in possession of a gun, said he paid them $600,000 to get him a pardon.
“This is what I was led to believe: If you come with this money, you will get a pardon,” Badazz said.
He showed Stahl a text Wohl and Burkman allegedly sent him, claiming the were recruiting several people in Trump’s orbit to grease the pardon wheels. Those names included Erika Kirk — which was misspelled as “Erica Kirk” — Laura Loomer, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), and executive aide Natalie Harp.
But their connections appeared to be totally fake; Stahl reported all four of them “Denied any involvement in the case.” Badazz then told her the pair have wiggled out of paying him back half of his money, as they contractually agreed to do if he didn’t get his deal.
“I said, ‘just return [the money], you didn’t get my pardon, it’s a bunch of BS,’” Badazz said. “And they were SO cocky.”
Rapper Boosie Badazz told 60 Minutes he shelled out $600,000 to try and get a pardon
The segment then shifted to Stahl reporting several high-profile pardons have been granted following payments tied to MAGA world.
Stahl pointed to a few examples which looked shady, including: electric car CEO Trevor Milton getting pardoned after donating $2 million to Trump’s re-election campaign, the founder of the Binance crypto exchange getting pardoned after he helped the Trump family move into cryptocurrencies, and the pardon of a healthcare executive whose mother attended a $1 million fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago.
She then asked Ed Martin, who ran the DOJ’s pardon department before quitting in August, about the pardons.
“A pardon seeker going to Mar-a-Lago and joining in a fundraising event where you had to pay money and then getting a pardon, why isn’t that a quid pro quo?” she asked. “Why isn’t that pay to play?
“I don’t know about those examples, but I would just say the prerogative, again the presidential prerogative, that it’s in the Constitution. It’s complete. It’s plenary,” Martin said. “When people say, ‘It’s brokers, there’s quid pro quo,’ I’ve never seen it. I haven’t seen it, haven’t heard it.”
Earlier in the show, Stahl noted presidential pardons date back to George Washington, and were most recently used by President Joe Biden to pardon his son Hunter Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci, among others. But she told Martin the optics around the supposed pardon brokers look terrible for the Trump administration.
“Ed, the point is they’re going around you. And they’re bragging about going around you,” she told him.
“I just don’t see any evidence of some magical brokers,” he replied. “I think people are trying to make money.”
She followed up, “So are you saying that these brokers, they’re con men?”
“They’re snake oil salesmen, they’re swamp salesmen,” Martin responded. “What word do you want?”
As the segment came to a close, Stahl reported 60 Minutes reached out to tell Wohl and Burkman they had been recorded on a hidden camera. Both men called it a “sting” operation but relented to an interview.
“There’s nothing corrupt about [the operation],” Wohl said. “There’s nothing improper about it.”
“It seems that you have to have money to get a pardon these days,” Stahl followed up.
“We don’t work for free any more than you do, right?” Burkman answered. “You’re well-paid for what you do. We’re well-paid for what I do. Navigating Washington, as you well know is not an easy thing. The average person, the average rich person, they need help doing that.”
Burkman and Wohl defend themselves
She finished the segment by saying the White House denied any claim Trump was selling pardons.
“Anyone spending money to lobby for pardons is foolishly wasting their money,” the White House told her.”President Trump performs his constitutional duties in an ethically sound manner, and to suggest so otherwise is either ill-informed or malicious.”
Watch above.
The post ‘A Bunch of BS’: 60 Minutes Launches Hidden Camera Probe Into ‘Pardon Brokers’ Selling Access to Trump — For Big Bucks first appeared on Mediaite.
‘A Bunch of BS’: 60 Minutes Launches Hidden Camera Probe Into ‘Pardon Brokers’ Selling Access to Trump — For Big Bucks 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-09-14 02:35:27 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
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