Okay, so here I am everyone!! =Phttps://t.co/NuyZlcWfd9#HelloWorld pic.twitter.com/gKsMFTYukO
— Chelsea Manning (@xychelsea) May 18, 2017
Ex-convict Bradley “Chelsea” Manning tweeted a photo of himself after leaving prison a free man, thanks to former President Barack Obama.
Manning, 29, was released from prison on Wednesday after Obama commuted his 35-year sentence to time served.
Manning, who is only 5-foot-2, walked free Wednesday after serving 7 years of his sentence. He was eligible for parole in 6 years.
The former U.S. Army intelligence analyst turned over thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks.
Manning tweeted a head shot of himself wearing makeup and rocking a short haircut on Thursday. “Okay, so here I am everyone!! =P,” he tweeted to his 184K followers.
Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison for espionage and leaking classified military secrets to Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks.
Assange, 45, has been in exile in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London for the past 6 years. He faces espionage charges in the U.S. and sex assault charges in Sweden if he leaves the embassy.
Assange has said said he would leave the embassy if Manning was released from prison.
Obama commuted Manning’s sentence in the final days of his administration.
Obama, who is rumored to be bisexual, apparently took pity on the former Army Private First Class soldier who came out as transgender behind bars.
As an unpaid active duty soldier, Manning is entitled to health benefits, meaning taxpayers will foot the bill for his hormone shots and sex change surgeries.