FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump rallies with supporters in Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S. February 10, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he did not intervene to ask the Justice Department to seek a shorter prison sentence for his former adviser Roger Stone, but Trump said he would be allowed to do so.

Prosecutors on Monday recommended a prison sentence of seven to nine years for Stone, who was one of several Trump associates who faced charges stemming from then-Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Trump called the recommendation ridiculous.

Trump declined to comment when asked by reporters at the White House whether he was considering issuing a pardon for Stone.