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Todd Chrisley fired back at critics of his pardon, claiming the outrage isn’t about justice at all.
Todd insisted he and his wife Julie Chrisley haven’t experienced any kind of negative reaction in real life, but former fans online have taken issue with who signed the reality TV stars’ release papers.
“You have people that say things on social media that they used to love us, but now that Trump pardoned us,” he told Variety. “Their issue is who pardoned us. It’s not that we were pardoned, it’s who pardoned us.”
“So I would say to any person that has an issue with that, if they were in our situation and President Trump could have pardoned them, they would have stood in line to have gotten that pardon,” Todd added.
TODD AND JULIE CHRISLEY’S CHILDREN ACCUSE FAMILY MEMBERS OF BETRAYAL, “LOSE OUR LAST NAME”
Todd and Julie were both pardoned by Trump in May 2025 after being convicted on federal charges of bank fraud and tax evasion. They were sentenced to a combined 19 years behind bars. The couple walked out of prison after serving two and a half years, and have always maintained their innocence.
Todd said he tries to ignore the online criticism, but will respond if it’s directed at him.
“I live my life based off of what I know is the right thing to do for me, my wife, my children and my mother,” the “Chrisley Knows Best” star explained. “I try not to be rude. I try not to offend people,” he said. “But if you knock on my door, and you come to my door with that, then I’ve got something waiting for you.”
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Todd seemingly wants to distance himself from the political conversation surrounding his family since his conviction and subsequent pardon.
“I don’t want my conversations to be political. I don’t want the movements that I make to be politicized,” he told the outlet. “I want the world to know that Julie and I and our family are the same today. Our core value system is still the same, and it’s still intact. We’re a family that loves people, and our love is not conditional because you love this person, or you live this way, or you believe in this. We are so blessed that everyone that has a seat at our table, for the most part, has a different political view. And yet, we still have dinner together here in Nashville. We still have a great time. We’re there for each other when something happens, and I feel like that, that’s what the world needs.”
“You can sit and say, ‘I hate President Trump,’ ‘I hate Joe Biden,’ ‘I hate Obama,’ ‘I hate Clinton.’ That’s like a football team,” Todd explained. “I love Clemson University. That’s where Julie and I grew up, but my son goes to Alabama, so we can’t pull for Clemson when they’re playing Alabama. Just understand that you have a different team that you root for. But do it with respect, do it with kindness and do it with generosity,” he said. “And if we could all get to that place in life, then I think that the world would be a much better place.”
WATCH: ‘CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST’ STARS TODD AND JULIE CHRISLEY EXPLAIN HOW THEY’VE CHANGED SINCE PRISON
“We were able to come home to our home, we were able to have a car, to be able to have our clothes, to be able to go and sit down for a nice dinner,” he added. “And so many people don’t have that. So it has been a very humbling season for our family, and it has exposed us to families that we probably would have never had any interaction with. And so I look at that, and I look at where our life is today and how blessed we are since we’ve been home. And I don’t take it for granted.”
Outside the political conversation, Chrisley recently reflected on that sense of redemption while speaking with Fox News Digital following his surprise appearance alongside Julie on FOX’s “The Masked Singer.”
“For me, it was a moment of giving all the glory to God, because I knew that only through the grace of God was this happening,” Todd told Fox News Digital. “When I stepped out on that stage, I closed my eyes and said, ‘God, thank you, no matter what happens from this point forward, I know that you are with me.’ And then I think He took a coffee break when Julie started singing.”
WATCH: TODD CHRISLEY JOKES GOD ‘TOOK A COFFEE BREAK’ DURING JULIE’S ‘MASKED SINGER’ PERFORMANCE
Julie described the experience as a “full-circle” moment, recalling that she once watched the show from prison before standing on its stage herself.
“We went through this horrible experience, but we went through it and came out the other side, and we’re standing strong,” she said. “Who would have thought a year ago that we’d be standing on the Masked Singer stage? I’m really, really grateful.”
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Julie admitted the couple has “never shied away” from the scandal and controversy they’ve gone through publicly. “We just look at it as, it’s our story. And so we’re going to tell our story. Who better to tell our story than us.”
The two returned to reality TV months after they walked out of prison for their new show, “The Chrisleys: Back to Reality.”
Fox News Digital’s Larry Fink contributed to this report
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