What will Trump do Wednesday?
Getty ImagesPresident-elect Joe Biden's inauguration starts at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT on Wednesday. The White House has yet to release the final list of people President Donald Trump will pardon before he leaves office. His staff met over the weekend to compile a list of around 100 people the president will pardon or commute the sentences of, according to a report from CNN Monday. Some pardons reportedly come with a price of $2 million as reported by the New York Times Sunday.
According to a Fox News reporter, Trump will not attempt to pardon himself -- which some scholars say would be illegal (more on that below) -- nor his family members. The more notable names tossed around for a pardon are Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, senior adviser Stephen Miller and rapper Lil Wayne. One person expecting a pardon is Joe Exotic from the Netflix documentary Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, who reportedly has a limo ready to pick him up from prison according to Metro.
The House of Representatives impeached President Donald Trump for a second time on Jan. 13, a first for any US president. As the Senate awaits the start of its trial to determine whether Trump incited an insurrection when a mob of his supporters stormed Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, Trump still retains pardoning power, which he can use to unilaterally forgive a person for federal crimes. Trump has reportedly asked aides about the reach of his pardoning power since the November election, which he lost to President-elect Joe Biden.
Before Trump's impeachment vote in the House, at least two figures connected with the White House -- former Attorney General William Barr and White House counsel Pat Cipollone -- had previously reportedly warned the president not to attempt a self-pardon, according to CNN. But could he? What kind of pardoning power does a president have and who might Trump pardon next? Here's what you need to know about presidential pardoning.
Can Trump pardon rioters from the Capitol Hill insurrection?
Technically, yes, as long as Trump still maintains his pardoning power. On the day the mob stormed the Capitol, 13 people were arrested. Since then, law enforcement charged dozens more who traveled to Washington to participate in the riot after the FBI posted more pictures of suspects. Those arrested could be charged with federal crimes and face time in jail of up to 10 years.
Trump could pardon each individual charged with a crime or provide a blanket pardon for anyone facing federal penalties for the riot. There is precedent for this mass pardoning. When President Jimmy Carter took office in 1977, one of his first acts was to pardon anyone who evaded the Vietnam War draft.
Does Trump have the power to pardon anyone he likes? Is there a limit?
Technically, there isn't a limit on the number of pardons a president can grant. Along with the previously mentioned blanket pardon by Carter, President Andrew Johnson pardoned hundreds of thousands of Confederate soldiers and wealthy Southerners during his time in office.
Who did Trump pardon while he was in office?
Trump has pardoned 70 people, so far. This includes former members of his campaign and staff who made false statements to federal agents -- Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, Paul Manafort and George Papadopoulos. He also granted posthumous pardons to women's rights activist Susan B. Anthony and early 20th-century championship boxer Jack Johnson.
Who might Trump pardon before he leaves The White House?
There are still a number of people Trump could pardon before the end of his presidency. While Trump reportedly won't preemptively pardon his children -- Ivanka, Don Jr. and Eric Trump -- members of his staff who might receive a pardon could include personal attorney Rudy Guiliani (who is at risk of losing his membership to the New York State Bar Association), Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, senior adviser Stephen Miller, personnel chief John McEntee and social media director Dan Scavino, according to a report from Bloomberg.
It's also reported Trump could pardon a few celebrities, including rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black. A report from CNN Monday says the White House staff has a list of approximately 100 people who will receive a pardon or have their sentences commuted.
Can Trump pardon himself?
The Constitution doesn't explicitly bar a president from granting self-clemency against prosecution. In the event that Trump tested the law, it could come down to interpretation. Some legal scholars suggest that if there's no explicit rule against self-pardoning in the text, then it isn't legal.
"No president has the constitutional authority to self-pardon," said Jared Carter, assistant professor at Vermont Law School.
While no president has yet attempted to pardon himself, President Richard Nixon did ask the Office of Legal Counsel in 1974 for an opinion on the matter while he was entrenched in the Watergate scandal.
"Under the fundamental rule that no one may be a judge in his own case, the president cannot pardon himself," Mary C. Lawton, acting assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel, said in a memo on Aug. 5, 1974. Nixon resigned on Aug. 9, 1974.
In purely academic terms, if Trump weren't impeached and attempted to go through with the action before the end of his presidency, the only way to test the legality of a self-pardon would have been for him to be charged with a federal crime. This would, theoretically, most likely have occurred through the Department of Justice after Biden takes office on Jan. 20. From there, the case would hypothetically have to make its way to the Supreme Court, which would ultimately decide the legality of a self-pardon. Again, the situation has now changed.
Could President-elect Biden pardon Trump?
This is a highly unlikely move by the next president, but there are some people saying Biden should consider the option. One of the most notable voices in favor of this is the former director of the FBI, James Comey -- who was fired by Trump himself.
"He [Biden] should at least consider it," Comey said on Jan. 13. "I obviously think he [Trump] belongs in jail, but I don't think pursuing that is in the best interests of the entire nation."
“Donald Trump belongs in jail.”
Ex-FBI Director @Comey says while he “obviously believes” the president should be in jail, he doesn’t think “pursuing that is in the best interests of the American people”, adding Joe Biden should "consider" pardoning Donald Trump#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/RUghKyq5nW
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) January 13, 2021
So far, there is no indication the Biden administration is contemplating such a pardon.
"last" - Google News
January 20, 2021 at 09:06AM
https://ift.tt/2Kt51lU
Trump pardons today: Who will be granted clemency on his last day, how pardoning works - CNET
"last" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2rbmsh7
https://ift.tt/2Wq6qvt
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Trump pardons today: Who will be granted clemency on his last day, how pardoning works - CNET"
Post a Comment