The White House is pushing back against a viral report suggesting that President Donald Trump is preparing to pardon Sean “Diddy” Combs, who is currently serving a 50-month prison sentence.

The speculation began after TMZ published a story on October 21, citing an unnamed “high-ranking official” who claimed Trump was “vacillating” on whether to grant clemency to the embattled music mogul. But according to a firm statement from the administration, those claims are false.

“There is zero truth to the TMZ report, which we would have gladly explained had they reached out before running their fake news,” the White House told NBC News.
“The President — not anonymous sources — is the final decider on pardons and commutations.”

TMZ, however, stood by their reporting, telling NBC, “We stand by our story.”

Combs’ legal team has not publicly commented on the latest developments, though one of his attorneys previously told CNN that they had contacted the administration about a possible pardon.

Trump himself addressed the topic back in August, telling Newsmax that while he once had a friendly relationship with the Bad Boy Records founder, their falling-out during his presidency complicated his feelings:

“I was very friendly with him… seemed like a nice guy. But when I ran for office, he was very hostile. He said some not-so-nice things about me. It makes it more difficult — I’m being honest.”

Trump and Diddy have a long public history, having been photographed together at events over the years. During Trump’s 2015 campaign, Diddy described him as a “friend,” but later became one of his most vocal critics, calling the 2020 election a “war of love versus hate.”

In July 2025, Combs was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution following a highly publicized trial. He was acquitted of more serious sex-trafficking charges and has maintained his innocence.

As of now, the White House insists no pardon decision is imminent, but the controversy underscores just how politically charged any move involving the hip-hop icon would be.