Overview

• Internal messages from Associate Deputy Attorney General Brad Weinsheimer urged the White House to stop saying all recipients were convicted of non‑violent drug offenses, calling that description untrue or misleading.
• Emails show Weinsheimer flagged 19 highly problematic cases, with at least 16 ultimately granted clemency, including inmates with violent histories such as murder and torture tied to drug operations.
• Weinsheimer called the warrant phrase “offenses described to the Department of Justice” highly problematic and requested a direct statement from the president to define which offenses each commutation covered.
• The records indicate the Jan. 17 action used autopen‑signed warrants to commute nearly 2,500 sentences and that DOJ and courts sought basic lists clarifying the offenses covered for each individual.
• The Oversight Project obtained and released the emails this week, fueling ongoing House Oversight and DOJ inquiries, while reporting shows no public corrective from the White House on the original messaging.