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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsCan a president pardon himself?
I was listening to Michael Steele on Brian Williams (as I was making my sign for tomorrow's protest) and he said that this pardon BS is leading up to the fucking moron's pardoning himself and Brian didn't ask him if that is a possibility. Is it? Are there any legal eagle DUers out there?
*Oops...I just saw that someone else just asked the same thing.
RESIST! REMOVE! Peace.
berni_mccoy
(23,018 posts)BigmanPigman
(51,673 posts)berni_mccoy
(23,018 posts)BigmanPigman
(51,673 posts)berni_mccoy
(23,018 posts)And the NY Atty General is waiting for the opportunity.
EffieBlack
(14,249 posts)It doesnt mean he cant pardon himself.
Its not clear whether he has the power to pardon himself - its never been attempted or litigated - however, DOJ prepared an opinion during Watergate stating that a president could not pardon himself. Of course, Trump DOJ surely wouldnt feel bound to that.
Xipe Totec
(43,892 posts)And you cannot pardon yourself from impeachment.
Renew Deal
(81,900 posts)Though most opinions I've heard think he can't. The problem is what happens next.
Anon-C
(3,430 posts)Volaris
(10,281 posts)And I'm inclined to think Roberts has a high enough opinion of his Court, and a low enough opinion of Trump, that he won't let his Court fuck that up.
RainCaster
(10,962 posts)That's all he cares about.
madinmaryland
(64,934 posts)pnwmom
(109,025 posts)So did Nixon's Justice Department.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/no-trump-cant-pardon-himself-the-constitution-tells-us-so/2017/07/21/f3445d74-6e49-11e7-b9e2-2056e768a7e5_story.html?utm_term=.9e728350cd26
Can a president pardon himself? Four days before Richard Nixon resigned, his own Justice Departments Office of Legal Counsel opined no, citing the fundamental rule that no one may be a judge in his own case. We agree.
The Justice Department was right that guidance could be found in the enduring principles that no one can be both the judge and the defendant in the same matter, and that no one is above the law.
The Constitution specifically bars the president from using the pardon power to prevent his own impeachment and removal. It adds that any official removed through impeachment remains fully subject to criminal prosecution. That provision would make no sense if the president could pardon himself.
Gothmog
(145,965 posts)I doubt that Trump can legally pardon himself. The fact that we are having to ask the question is so very very sad https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/05/24/could-trump-issue-himself-a-pardon/?utm_term=.5aac3e6356f6
The constitutional language governing pardons reads, The President shall have Power to Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment. That vagueness is part of the reason the boundaries of the authority would need to be interpreted by the courts in unusual cases, like the one at hand.
That said, Kalts got an opinion about what the Supreme Court would do if Trump (or any president) tried to give himself a pardon: Theyd throw it out.
Kalts reasons are similarly rooted in interpretations of the language of the Constitution and the intent of its authors.
For example, a pardon is inherently something that you get from someone else, he argued. Thats not explicit in the constitutional language, but, then, other boundaries we understand for pardons arent either, such as our understanding that there need not be a criminal charge before a pardon. (The most famous example of this kind of pardon was offered by President Gerald Ford to his predecessor, Richard Nixon.)
P.S. Ruckman, professor of political science at Northern Illinois University and author of the blog Pardon Power agreed with this idea in an email. Supreme Court jurisprudence has always assumed a dichotomy the granter and the recipient, he said the implication being that one person cant play both roles.
Whats more, presidents are supposed to be limited, Kalt said. The president has all of this power, but he has a limited term. If he was able to pardon himself, that would project his power well past his term.
Gothmog
(145,965 posts)From Prof. Tribe and others https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/no-trump-cant-pardon-himself-the-constitution-tells-us-so/2017/07/21/f3445d74-6e49-11e7-b9e2-2056e768a7e5_story.html?utm_term=.a066d8b411f4
The Justice Department was right that guidance could be found in the enduring principles that no one can be both the judge and the defendant in the same matter, and that no one is above the law.
The Constitution specifically bars the president from using the pardon power to prevent his own impeachment and removal. It adds that any official removed through impeachment remains fully subject to criminal prosecution. That provision would make no sense if the president could pardon himself.
The pardon provision of the Constitution is there to enable the president to act essentially in the role of a judge of another persons criminal case, and to intervene on behalf of the defendant when the president determines that would be equitable. For example, the president might believe the courts made the wrong decision about someones guilt or about sentencing; President Barack Obama felt this way about excessive sentences for low-level drug offenses. Or the president might be impressed by the defendants subsequent conduct and, using powers far exceeding those of a parole board, might issue a pardon or commutation of sentence.....
President Trump thinks he can do a lot of things just because he is president. He says that the president can act as if he has no conflicts of interest. He says that he can fire the FBI director for any reason he wants (and he admitted to the most outrageous of reasons in interviews and in discussion with the Russian ambassador). In one sense, Trump is right he can do all of these things, although there will be legal repercussions if he does. Using official powers for corrupt purposes such as impeding or obstructing an investigation can constitute a crime.
But there is one thing we know that Trump cannot do without being a first in all of human history. He cannot pardon himself.