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The White House recently announced President Donald Trump on Thursday exercised his authority under Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution to grant a “full, complete, and unconditional pardon” to former Republican Indiana Rep. Stephen Buyer, who was convicted of profiting from insider information.
The pardon absolves Buyer of a 2023 federal conviction that resulted in a 22-month prison sentence.
Buyer, who chaired the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and served as a House prosecutor during former President Bill Clinton’s 1998 impeachment trial, was found guilty by a jury of operating off nonpublic, insider information after he left office.
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Former Rep. Stephen Buyer, R-Ind., arrives for his insider trading trial at the United States Courthouse in Manhattan, New York City, March 8, 2023. (Brendan McDermid)
The White House proclamation praised Buyer’s “distinguished and highly productive” career, citing his service as a judge advocate general in the U.S. Army and his 1993–2011 tenure as a U.S. representative from Indiana.
The pardon was supported by the “complete and total endorsement” of more than 50 current and former lawmakers, the White House said.
Among those who endorsed the pardon included Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and Roger Wicker and former House Speaker John Boehner. Other supporters were former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., former Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, former Rep. Dan Burton, R-Ind., former Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, and former Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill Jr.
The proclamation directed Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to “administer and effectuate the immediate issuance of a certificate of pardon” for Buyer.
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche was directed to obtain a certificate of pardon for Buyer. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
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Buyer’s conviction stemmed from allegations that he purchased stock in a management company called Navigant just weeks before one of his own clients, Guidehouse, acquired it. He was then accused of buying shares of Sprint after secretly learning about the company’s unannounced plans to merge with T-Mobile.
During the proceedings, U.S. District Judge Richard Berman, a Clinton nominee, argued the former congressman obstructed justice by giving the court false explanations for why he made the trades.
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Buyer’s legal team pushed for a sentence of home confinement and community service rather than prison time, arguing that despite Buyer once earning up to $2.2 million in a single year, the cost of litigation had financially ruined him.
According to his lawyers, Buyer and his wife were forced to sell their home, condo and two cars, and his wife had to re-enter the workforce at 65 years old.
Rep. Stephen Buyer, R-Ind., talks to reporters on Feb. 4, 1999, outside the Senate chamber in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., before going into the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. (Luke Frazza/AFP via Getty Images)
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Despite the defense’s efforts, Berman sentenced Buyer to 22 months in prison, ordered him to forfeit the $354,027 he made from the illegal trades and imposed an additional $10,000 fine.
Federal prosecutors also pushed for Buyer to pay $1.4 million to cover the legal fees for both sides, but the judge ruled against the request.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
