President Donald Trump didn’t hold back during a fiery exchange with CNN journalist Kaitlan Collins after being questioned about his recent decision to pardon cryptocurrency billionaire Changpeng Zhao better known as “CZ,” the founder of Binance.
Zhao had been sentenced to four months in prison in April 2024 after pleading guilty to violating U.S. money laundering laws. He also agreed to pay a $4.3 billion settlement following a federal investigation that found Binance had helped users bypass sanctions.
On October 23, Trump announced a full presidential pardon for Zhao a move that immediately reignited public debate over his administration’s growing ties to the cryptocurrency industry. Critics noted that several members of the Trump family have reportedly deepened their own crypto investments in recent months.
During a press briefing shortly after the announcement, Collins pressed Trump on why he had pardoned Zhao and whether his decision was linked to his family’s crypto involvement.
Trump responded sharply, saying:
“He was recommended by a lot of people. They said he wasn’t guilty of anything. He served his time four months and people say he did nothing wrong.”
The former president then lost his temper with the reporter, saying:
“You don’t know much about crypto. You know nothing about nothing you’re fake news.”
He continued to defend the pardon, claiming he had consulted several advisors before making the decision.
“I’ve been told he had a lot of support. They say what he did wasn’t even a crime that he was persecuted by the Biden administration,” Trump added.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later supported the president’s decision, framing Zhao’s prosecution as part of what she called the Biden administration’s “war on cryptocurrency.”
“This was an overly prosecuted case,” Leavitt said, adding that the pardon aimed to “correct the Biden administration’s overreach and restore fairness.”
He pardons all the crooks
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