Trump plans to pardon Conrad Black, media mogul who was convicted of fraud in 2007. Black is reputedly a friend of Trump's, and he wrote a book recently called, "Donald J. Trump: A President Like No Other."
https://www.npr.org/2019/05/16/72384909 ... y-last-yea
http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/05/ ... t-him.html
It is also being reported that Trump plans on Memorial Day to pardon some Navy Seals and servicemen accused of crimes. In particular he plans to pardon one Navy Seal who opened fire on innocent civilians, slit the throat of a 12-year old girl with a knife, gunned down a defenseless old man, and other atrocities. He was reported for these crimes by his fellow Seals. He had yet to stand trial; most pardons come after the person has already been found guilty.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/18/us/t ... rimes.html
Are these pardons appropriate use of the Presidential pardon power? Is this okay? What is the argument in favor of any of these pardons?
Presidential Pardons
Re: Presidential Pardons
Trump doesn’t even need a reason. He can pardon anybody he wants. It’s Trump, of course it’s not appropriate. Nothing he does is appropriate.
In four years, you don’t have to vote again. We’ll have it fixed so good, you’re not gonna have to vote.
Re: Presidential Pardons
It is awful to pardon your friends/colleagues because they say nice things about your or give you money. It was awful with Trump, it was awful with Reagan, and Clinton and Bush 41. But what Trump is supposedly planning to do with Gallagher is atrocious. Much more so than when Bush 43 commuted the sentence for the murdering border patrol agents.
And there are literally not barriers to presidential pardons. He could arguably pardon himself.
And there are literally not barriers to presidential pardons. He could arguably pardon himself.
Re: Presidential Pardons
Wait til he leaves office...
Re: Presidential Pardons
They'll have to get them in state court. He'll pardon Don Jr, Jared, the whole lot of 'em.
Re: Presidential Pardons
He and the Rs will find a way to allow for pardons to apply to state charges. They'll either change the law or ignore it and fight it in court.
I doubt anyone in Trump's family, including Kushner, will see any jail time for anything.
I doubt anyone in Trump's family, including Kushner, will see any jail time for anything.
Re: Presidential Pardons
It is in the constitution, so I can't see them changing the law. But white collar, white, rich guys don't go to prison often anyway.
Re: Presidential Pardons
Lots of things are in the constitution yet look where we are.
Re: Presidential Pardons
What crimes have the family been indicted for?
"There are 3 rules I live by: never get less than 12 hours sleep, never play cards with a guy with the same first name as a city & never get involved with a woman with a tattoo of a dagger on her body. Everything else is cream cheese."
Re: Presidential Pardons
All indications are that there are sealed indictments waiting for them from the SDNY relating to taxes, laundering, etc.
Re: Presidential Pardons
How were they not indicted during the Mueller investigation?
"There are 3 rules I live by: never get less than 12 hours sleep, never play cards with a guy with the same first name as a city & never get involved with a woman with a tattoo of a dagger on her body. Everything else is cream cheese."
Re: Presidential Pardons
There are 12 undisclosed items farmed out to other groups (like SDNY).
Re: Presidential Pardons
Ok. I guess we'll wait. Why do you think they are holding out to charge them if they have dirt on them? Political timing?
"There are 3 rules I live by: never get less than 12 hours sleep, never play cards with a guy with the same first name as a city & never get involved with a woman with a tattoo of a dagger on her body. Everything else is cream cheese."
Re: Presidential Pardons
I don't think the investigations are complete. If you are charging some middle of the road guy with tax evasion or even money laundering, you do that when you feel the case is pretty good. If you are charging the POTUS and/or his family, you make sure your case is air tight, all records are triple verifiable, and you have independent corroboration. That takes a lot of time and resources, and even more so when you are talking about people that actually have access to the evidence against them.
Keep in mind that if the DOJ has a standing policy that says you can't indict a sitting president, that will hold true for the SDNY or any other jurisdiction. So those cases may very well sit there (instead of at the DOJ in DC since clearly Barr was hired to stop the investigation) until he is out of office.
Re: Presidential Pardons
My understanding is that Mueller is a very by-the-books guy. His investigation was to look into conspiracy between Trump / his campaign and Russia, as well as obstruction of justice. If he found evidence of other crimes along the way, such as money laundering, fraud, etc., he felt he wasn't supposed to directly indict or try to prosecute those. He handed them off to the FBI, SDNY, or whatever was the appropriate group or jurisdiction to process them. I don't think he is calculating or trying to time something to maximize political damage to Trump. (Mueller is a lifelong Republican and no particular enemy of the GOP or Trump.) He's just trying to follow the narrow mandate that was assigned to him and his investigation.
Re: Presidential Pardons
I thought he was part of the 18 conflicted, angry democrats conspiring to conduct a witch hunt!Marty [Mori Chu] wrote: ↑Wed May 22, 2019 10:52 amMy understanding is that Mueller is a very by-the-books guy. His investigation was to look into conspiracy between Trump / his campaign and Russia, as well as obstruction of justice. If he found evidence of other crimes along the way, such as money laundering, fraud, etc., he felt he wasn't supposed to directly indict or try to prosecute those. He handed them off to the FBI, SDNY, or whatever was the appropriate group or jurisdiction to process them. I don't think he is calculating or trying to time something to maximize political damage to Trump. (Mueller is a lifelong Republican and no particular enemy of the GOP or Trump.) He's just trying to follow the narrow mandate that was assigned to him and his investigation.
Re: Presidential Pardons
Are any of you following this story about the disgraced Navy SEAL? This is not quite a "pardon," but it seemed to fit here. Eddie Gallagher served overseas in the Middle East and, against orders, killed civilians and posed for joyful selfies with their dead bodies. He was caught and due to be punished for it; they were going to strip him of his Navy honors and not let him retire in good graces as a SEAL. President Trump talked about stepping in to block the Navy from doing so. In frustration, the Secretary of the Navy raised complaints and was either fired, forced out, or resigned; it's hard to tell. Now Trump is keeping Gallagher's Navy honors and is also reaching out to him to go on the 2020 campaign trail with him. Blech.
https://www.npr.org/2019/11/25/78265722 ... -as-navy-s
https://www.npr.org/2019/11/25/78265722 ... -as-navy-s
Re: Presidential Pardons
Anything to create a controversy and divide people on an issue. Now he'll be spun as a true patriot and the Navy Secretary and the people who testified against him will be called weak and traitors.
Re: Presidential Pardons
war crimes are ok as long as US is the one doing it. that is exactly what this says. it makes our military much less safe, and recruits others to fight against our citizens.