Taxpayers pay for the office space of ex-Presidents, but that rent would have been higher than the rents for all the other living Presidents combined. The criticisms forced him to switch to a much cheaper office in Harlem instead. But the biggest issue involved the President's clemency power. This is the power to pardon , or forgive, people who have committed crimes, or to make jail sentences shorter. On his last day in office, Clinton pardoned 140 people and reduced the sentences of 36 others.
Presidents often give pardons.
But some have criticized the list of people Clinton helped, and the way he did it. Many were issued with little input from the Justice Department, which normally reviews pardon requests first. The most controversial pardon was for Marc Rich, a billionaire who fled the United States and moved to Switzerland. Clinton said one reason he pardoned Rich was because of Rich's charitable work in the Middle East, aimed at helping to promote peace and education. But some lawmakers think Rich's ex-wife and other supporters helped buy the pardon by giving money to a library honoring Bill Clinton, or to Hillary's Senate campaign.