Before Christmas, President Donald Trump announced a one-time $1,776 payment to the men and women of our all-voluntary active-duty military. This gift lands somewhere between a good and great idea.

Because the payment was issued quickly, the administration chose to fund it by redirecting roughly $2.6 billion from an existing military program, the Basic Allowance for Housing.

There were certainly other ways to finance this bonus.

Which brings us to a more troubling example of robbing Peter to pay Paul. In this case, the Peter is the American taxpayer, and the Paul is Paul Walczak, a Florida businessman. Trump pardoned Walczak, eliminating $4.4 million in court-ordered fines and prison time.

Between 2016-19, Walczak failed to pay more than $10 million in employment taxes withheld from 600+ health care workers at nursing homes he operated. He used the money to fund luxury purchases, including a yacht. He was indicted in 2023, pleaded guilty in 2024, and in early April 2025 was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay $4.4 million in fines and restitution. Days later, Walczak’s mother attended a $1-million-per-plate fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago. Weeks later, Trump pardoned Paul.

That pardon effectively transferred $4.4 million from taxpayers back to Walczak. Former DOJ pardon attorney Liz Oyer has tabulated that fines and restitution forgiven through Trump’s 2025 pardons now exceed $1.3 billion.

Yes, President Joe Biden’s family pardons were also wrong. But they did not carry a $1.3 billion cost to the public.

Steve Tomlinson

Cresson