Getty US President Donald Trump boards Air Force One before departing Harlingen, Texas on January 12, 2021.
Pamela Anderson is begging Donald Trump to “do the right thing” by granting a presidential pardon to her friend, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
The actress and mother of The Hills: New Beginnings star Brandon Thomas Lee made a plea on Instagram hours before Trump’s presidency was set to end.
Anderson, who is one of Assange’s biggest supporters and has visited him at a maximum-security prison in London, shared a photo on Instagram that showed her posing next to the WikiLeaks founder.
“The world is watching,” she wrote in a not-so-subtle message to Trump.
Trump is expected to issue up to 100 commutations and pardons before departing the White House on January 20th.
Here’s what you need to know.
Assange Was Accused of Leaking Classified Information About the Iraq & Afghanistan Wars on WikiLeaks, but Anderson Stood By His Side
Assange faces criminal charges tied to the release of classified documents given to him by former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. If extradited to the United States and found guilty, the 49-year-old publisher could spend up to 175 years in jail, according to the New York Post
“The case is simply a criminalization of a free press,” Anderson told the outlet. “Julian is being charged with journalism. Documents that have exposed war crimes and human rights abuses. Now the U.S. wants to punish him for exposing crimes.”
In an interview on Tucker Carlson Tonight, the actress said that a pardon for Assange would represent a “defining moment for the president,” according to Fox News.
“The entire world wants, or most want him to pardon Julian Assange,” Anderson told Carlson. “This is his time to shine and really make an impression on the world. If this goes to trial, that’s the end of the First Amendment.”
Anderson said this is Trump’s chance to “do the right thing” and defend a “free speech hero.”
“This is one of those moments in history, in his lifetime, where he can make the right decision,” she said. “He would really gain a huge following and a huge sigh of relief and gratefulness from so many people on the planet.”
According to Sky News, Anderson told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that she believes Trump is considering the pardon for Assange and that it would be a positive move for him as he ends his presidency.
“I know that I am in his ear,” the former Baywatch star said. “I know he is debating and we will see what happens. I think that he is obviously against fake news and WikiLeaks is anti-fake news. It would be a perfect way to go out.”
While She Is Hoping for Trump to ‘Do the Right Thing,’ Anderson Hasn’t Always Been the Biggest Fan of the 45th POTUS
Fans may recall that Anderson made a cameo on her son Brandon’s MTV reality show The Hills: New Beginnings when it was filmed in 2018. At the time, the young actor revealed that he rarely sees his famous mom because she moved to France.
“She moved to France when Trump got elected,” Brandon said on the show. “And just was like ‘Peace out.’”
In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Anderson revealed that she voted for Jill Stein after Bernie Sanders dropped out of the 2016 presidential race.
But Trump’s win wasn’t actually the whole reason for Anderson’s move to Europe. In 2019, The Associated Press reported that the actress and activist relocated to France to be with her French soccer player boyfriend Adil Rami.
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‘The Hills’ Star’s Mom Begs Trump for Pardon