Chuck Callesto, a political strategist and founder of Star Political, expressed his support for President Trump’s pardon of Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. He also urged Senator Elizabeth Warren to respect Supreme Court limits on the Speech or Debate Clause. Callesto made these statements on the social media platform X.
“This week Trump pardoned crypto innovator CZ,” said Callesto. “People like Senator Warren are now making up false claims that he was apart of money laundering schemes. These outlandish claims have been proven wrong. Someone needs to remind her that the speech and debate clause don’t apply to social media.”
Following President Trump’s October 23 pardon of Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, Senator Elizabeth Warren claimed that Zhao “pleaded guilty to a criminal money laundering charge.” She linked this assertion with implications about lobbying and favoritism. However, this portrayal misrepresents the situation: Zhao’s plea was related to failing to maintain an effective anti-money-laundering program under the Bank Secrecy Act. He addressed this compliance issue by paying a $50 million fine and serving four months. The facts indicate CZ’s commitment to future compliance rather than supporting Warren’s narrative.
According to Trump, his pardon of Changpeng “CZ” Zhao was intended as a pro-innovation measure with widespread backing. When questioned about his decision, Trump said, “A lot of people said that he wasn’t guilty of anything,” adding that “what they said that he did is not even a crime” and, “I gave him a pardon at the request of a lot of very good people.” The White House described the decision as concluding the Biden administration’s “war on cryptocurrency.” These remarks portray CZ as a respected figure whose supporters advocated for clemency to promote U.S. leadership in cryptocurrency.
