Trump Poised to Pardon Convicted Drug Lord Because 'Why Not?'
Deutsche Welle blandly notes that Donald Trump plans to pardon former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, recently convicted in New York for drug trafficking and corruption. What they skip is the inconvenient history: Hernández was a 'staunch US ally,' propped up by successive administrations despite mounting evidence of his narco-state connections. (Source: DW, 'Trump plans to pardon
ex-Honduran President Hernandez,' 29 Nov 2025) This isn't just Trump being Trump; it's a bipartisan tradition of supporting 'friendly' strongmen, however criminal, to maintain regional 'stability' – or more accurately, US corporate interests. From the Sandinistas to the Contras, the US has a long track record of excusing atrocities for geopolitical convenience. Hernández's conviction was an
anomaly the US system was forced to acknowledge; a pardon would simply reset the default to deniability. How many Honduran lives were destabilized by a leader the US called a 'partner'? Apparently, accountability is reserved for enemies, not associates.