Rich criminals sure are enjoying a heyday in President Donald Trump’s second term. The latest person to benefit from the Trump administration’s approach of rewarding big donors—who also happen to be major criminals—is Andrew Wiederhorn, chair of FAT Brands.

On Wednesday, federal prosecutors in Los Angeles dropped two criminal cases against the fast food mogul. Was it newly discovered evidence that accounted for Wiederhorn’s good fortune? Heavens, no. It was what gets people off the hook these days: being a Trump donor.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli is overseeing this particular travesty. Essayli has been on a similar employment journey to his equally unqualified compatriot on the East Coast, New Jersey's acting US Attorney Alina Habba.

And just like Habba, Essayli is clinging to his gig by appeasing Trump—which means treating his donors favorably.Wiederhorn had been charged under the Biden administration for concealing $47 million in income and, in a separate case, possessing a gun despite being a convicted felon. He also allegedly forgave himself about $65 million in loans. The Internal Revenue Service spent 15 years trying to collect back taxes from Wiederhorn, who owed more than $7 million by March 2021.

Having a company that was found guilty of criminal tax fraud and other companies that were fined $364 million in civil fraud, and being personally convicted of 34 felonies for falsifying business records, Trump was always going to inexorably let financial felons off the hook.

Indeed, that’s been a major feature of the first few months of Trump’s second term, where pardons and other favors have been doled out to people like reality TV grifters Todd and Julie Chrisley; Virginia sheriff and bribe enthusiast Scott Jenkins; Nevada’s worst politician, Michele Fiore, who stole from a fund honoring a slain police officer to pay for plastic surgery; and crypto bro Justin Sun.

Now Trump’s corruption is benefiting Essayli, who has used his office to charge politicians and judges who are perceived to be thwarting Trump’s agenda.

It’s always a good sign when the top law enforcement officer of a major metropolitan area uses his job to harass political opponents.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos