Trump Issues On-Stage Pardons at Alaska Rally Ahead of Midterms
President Trump issued on-stage pardons to two Anchorage business owners during a campaign rally in Wasilla, Alaska, on October 13, 2026. The pardons were granted to Zachary Czubak and Patrick Fleming, co-owners of Arm Rippin Toys, Inc., a diesel repair shop.
Czubak and Fleming had pleaded guilty in 2022 to conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act by tampering with emissions monitoring devices and removing pollution control equipment from at least 37 diesel vehicles. They were sentenced to five years of probation, fines totaling $66,000, and community service.
During the rally, Trump called the two men onstage, signed the pardon documents, and held them aloft to the crowd's cheers. He criticized the charges as excessive and claimed the enforcement actions targeted the “Alaskan way of life.”
These pardons are part of a broader pattern in Trump's campaign strategy, where he has increasingly used clemency as a tool to appeal to voters. Earlier this year, he announced pardons for six individuals involved in similar Clean Air Act violations, framing federal prosecutions as “weaponization and stupidity.”
The Justice Department's clemency grants list, updated in September 2026, includes several pardons related to Clean Air Act offenses, although Czubak and Fleming's pardons are not yet officially listed, indicating their recent issuance.
Beyond pardons, Trump's campaign in Alaska also emphasized energy investments, with claims of a $4.4 billion investment from Taiwan and a proposed pipeline project, aiming to bolster economic growth in the resource-rich state.