Members of the Libertarian Party stand in chairs while chanting and demanding the release of Ross Ulbricht during the party's national convention at the Washington Hilton on May 25, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)
In May, Trump delivered a speech at the Libertarian National Convention to a hostile crowd of boos in an attempt to win over Libertarian voters. Libertarians believe government investigators overreached in their case against Silk Road and generally oppose the War on Drugs.
While the attendees were not favorable to Trump for most of the event, they did give a big cheer when he said he would commute Ulbricht's sentence to time served, as the crowd chanted "Free Ross" in the hopes that the then-presidential candidate would take action if elected to allow the Silk Road founder to return home to his family after more than a decade behind bars.
"If you vote for me, on day one I will commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht, to a sentence of time served. He’s already served 11 years. We’re going to get him home," Trump told the crowd of Libertarians, many of whom were holding signs that read "Free Ross."
Ulbricht reacted to Trump's comments the following day on the social media platform X.
"Last night, Donald Trump pledged to commute my sentence on day 1, if reelected," he wrote. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. After 11 years in prison, it is hard to express how I feel at this moment. It is thanks to your undying support that I may get a second chance."
Supporters of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged creator and operator of the Silk Road underground market, stand in front of a Manhattan federal court house on the first day of jury selection for his trial on January 13, 2015 in New York City. (Getty Images)
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During his first term, Trump considered intervening to release Ulbricht before ultimately deciding against a pardon.
Ulbricht, now 40, operated the website from 2011 until his arrest in 2013. He was sentenced two years later to life in prison.
"I was trying to help us move toward a freer and more equitable world," Ulbricht said from prison in 2021. "We all know the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and now here I am. I'm in hell."
"Trump is done signing EOs and pardons for the night," 2024 Libertarian presidential candidate Chase Oliver wrote on X. "Hopefully, we will see a #FREEROSSULBRICHT commutation in the morning."
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-failed-deliver-day-1-promise-grant-clemency-ross-ulbricht-founder-silk-road