As previously mentioned, pressure largely contributed to Trump not fulfilling certain promises and desired actions during his first term. Because of both the high likelihood that pressure will be largely absent and some of the decisions that Trump made during his first term, I do believe that Trump will free Ulbricht. Unfortunately, however, I don’t believe that Trump will free Ulbricht on day one. During his presidential campaign, Trump made various promises that he said would be achieved during his first day in office, including ending the war in Ukraine, securing the border, pardoning all January 6 rioters, and much more. It’s impossible for Trump to fulfill every one of these promises during his first day in office. It’s more likely that Trump’s hands will be tied.

Toward the end of the first series of Economic Sophisms, French economist Frédéric Bastiat asked rhetorically, “...what can be more injurious to a good cause than that it should be at the same time vigorously attacked and feebly defended?” Advocating for Ulbricht’s cause is part of the continuous fight for freedom and justice. Failing to fully defend Ulbricht by not pardoning him would not only forever stain Trump’s legacy, but would also have devastating effects to the movement advocating for Ulbricht’s clemency by obliterating the hope of many involved.