Trump issues 11 pardons on eve of country’s Fourth of July celebrations

Pardons issued to nine people charged with violating Clean Air Act as extreme heat smothers much of US

Donald Trump on Friday issued pardons to 11 men - two convicted fraudsters and nine charged with having violated the federal Clean Air Act by disabling or otherwise modifying trucks' emissions controls.

Those executive pardons - coming amid US semiquincentennial celebrations blanketed in extreme heat exacerbated by greenhouse gas emissions - were among a broader wave of acts of clemency from Trump during his second presidency, chiefly for those he considers to be aligned with him.