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SBF, maybe. Elizabeth Holmes, no chance.

No chance SBF ever goes out (until he's done with his sentence).

Two huge factors against him:

* Most people don't even know who CZ is, so this is meh-tier. People know SBF and find him repulsive, literally. Whoever puts SBF out of jail will face a massive PR backslash, he's not important enough to be worth that.

* SBF stole from the rich, the only real crime in the US.

Very few times you see someone who is equally hated by: the law, the public and the rich. He's screwed, lol.

I would add that SBF was at one point the 2nd largest donor to Democrats.

SBF/FTX was also a massive donor (using customer money) to Republicans. They routed that money through Ryan Salame, I guess to avoid appearing to be as unprincipled as they actually were.

The common theme to the donations ("payoff" or "bribe" might be more accurate), whether to D or R was to weaken any push for crypto regulations.

Correct. I think it is fair to say that SBF would rather be associated with Democrats based on how he wanted to hide the donations to Republicans.

I'll bet he's kicking himself now... he made the wrong bet associating himself with Democrats, who let justice take its course despite the donations, when these days Trump will just take a payoff and issue a pardon.

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/02/sam-bankman-fried-considered...

Actually the opposite. SBF was lobbying for crypto regulations. Of course those regulations would benefit FTX as an incumbent.

I watched this documentary:

https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2023-ruin-ftx-documentary...

The way CZ managed to tie up FTX in a knot was a masterclass. (about 59min in).

SBF was/is left (and I suppose mostly signaled rich in that camp), Ulbricht libertarian, but they were caught and therefore had to serve time in jail regardless. That is how our system works. SBF specialized in large scale grifting (like Madoff), Ulbricht in providing an anonymous platform for trafficking. They're competitors of Trump, but given their experience, intelligence, and disadvantage (jail time) if bend loyal they're an asset.

It isn't about any of these people though. Trump is about only one thing: himself (a trade he shares with someone like KJU of North Korea). Specifically, as a narcissist, Trump is all about his image: business and might makes right, no matter the rules. Trump therefore hates the left, truth, honesty, ethics, empowering the weak and minorities, et cetera. Most importantly, he is signaling here: 'if you do business with me, we do the criminal path, and you get caught then I have the power to pardon your sentence.'

Whether Trump is currently a criminal or not, he was and is a convicted felon.

The above is also why I very much suspect Ghislaine Maxwell has dirt on Trump.

What are the odds Shkreli gets a pardon so he can be an officer of a publicly traded company again?

He's already out. Livestreaming his stock trades on X everyday. Probably has less interest in being an officer. He can still short pharma companies freely now.

A pardon has effect on more aspects of a sentence than the carceral period.

Regarding your first point - how about George Santos? I suspect Santos was more well known than any of the crypto-scammers, was clearly guilty, was derided by both ends if the political spectrum - yet Trump commuted him.

Commute != pardon. Santos is still convicted and guilty of all of those charges. He just doesn't have to serve the rest of the sentence. I'm not sure if those were felony charges, but if they were and he's in a state that doesn't allow felons to vote...

A pardon makes it all go away. None of the baggage of convictions follow. Finding a job or a place to live is something they can do, as well as voting again.

By not pardoning, the state can't recharge them.

> massive PR backslash

Personally I do not believe there can be PR backslash for convicted criminal voted in as president.

> Whoever puts SBF out of jail will face a massive PR backslash [sic]

We’ve been hearing variations of “massive PR backlash” should Donald Trump do XYZ for literally a decade now.

There has never been any consequential backlash whatsoever.

You're probably right, because she smoozed with Biden, but with Trump anything is possible with the right bribes.

Does SBF have any ability to pay a bribe at this point?

I suppose one might assume he has some funds stashed offshore somewhere.

The Ivy League colleges should start campus on prisons for their alumni and other inmates who could learn and continue the grift.

His parents might but I don't think they're accepting bribes from Stanford profs. Maybe CZ can advocate for him to have a rival again.

Is it called a bribe at this point, or is it tribute?

Indulgence might be the most appropriate term.

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