Todd Chrisley Spills on His Candid First Conversation With Donald Trump After President Pardoned Him From Jail

Todd Chrisley spilled all the details about his first conversation with Donald Trump after the president pardoned him and his wife, Julie Chrisley, from their combined 19-year prison sentence.

"He was very kind, as I've said before, and I'll say for the rest of my life, I'm grateful to President Trump because President Trump reunited my family," Todd, 56, told a news outlet on Thursday, August 28. “And regardless of how you feel about leaning left, right, or whatever your political beliefs are, I don't know of anyone that's incarcerated that would turn down a pardon from President Trump."

Todd and Julie, 52, were initially indicted in 2019 in Atlanta, Ga., on federal tax evasion charges. The pair was accused of obtaining $30 million in bank loans to finance their lavish lifestyle, which fans saw first-hand on the USA reality series Chrisley Knows Best. Prosecutors then claimed that the reality TV stars evaded paying their taxes from 2008 to 2016.

Although the spouses maintained their innocence and claimed someone else had control of their finances, in June 2022, Todd was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and tax fraud. Meanwhile, Julie was found guilty of the same charges, along with wire fraud. Todd was sentenced to 12 years in prison, while Julie received a seven-year sentence.

However, less than three years later, Donald, 79, announced on May 27 that he had granted the reality TV alums full pardons.

Todd described walking out of prison like it was a normal day, not expecting to leave hours later with his freedom.

"My Joseph moment was getting up that morning and then that afternoon being told, you've been pardoned, we've got to get you out of here," the Chrisley Knows Best alum continued. "That's how quickly your life can change. When I spoke with President Trump via FaceTime, his first thing was, ‘Well, wow, you look great.’ And I was like, ‘Well, thank you.’ But he was very kind and very gracious."

Todd explained his perception of the president changed, as most of the public doesn’t “get to see” that side of Donald.

"We've been blessed to be able to see the kindness that President Trump has," Todd explained. "We've been blessed to see a humble man behind the scenes. And again, I want to separate political beliefs and let's look at each other as human beings, as all children of God, and to lift each other up."

Todd’s daughter Savannah Chrisley, who worked hard to get her parents released from prison, echoed her father’s sentiment about the POTUS.

"For me, when I spoke to the president for the very first time, I like to tell people I was so shocked because it wasn't like I was having a conversation with the president," she explained. "It felt like I was having a conversation with my father. The president was asking me about how I had custody of my brother and sister and how much time my parents got, and he wanted to know the story, and he wanted to know how I was doing. "