Mass Pardons Creates Trouble for Trump
Starting in January  people who could not have pronounced "emoluments" a month previously were opining confidently that  President Donald Trump  was violating the Constitutionâs clause about them. Now we're having to consider just how far  the presidentâs  pardon power runs.
 Trump  has reportedly asked  his  aides that question. Now conservative lawyers David Rivkin and Lee Casey are urging  him  to use the pardon power expansively  to block prosecutors from investigating and charging "anyone involved in supposed collusion with Russia or Russians during the 2016 presidential campaign " including  the president himself . Their Wall Street Journal op-ed goes even further  advising pardons for anyone involved in arguably related Obama administration misconduct.
Whether the courts would be obliged to respect a presidential self-pardon is a disputed question. But letâs assume that judges could not review the pardons that Rivkin and Casey recommend  as they cannot review the vast run of pardons.  Trump  should restrain  himself  from issuing these pardons even if  he  has the legal power to grant them â and even if  his  anger over special prosecutor Robert Muellerâs investigation of possible collusion between  his  campaign and Russia tempts  him  to make them.
Pardons all around wonât make for national harmony anyway. They would make the controversies already swirling around  Trump  burn hotter. They would lead to more and louder calls for impeachment. And they should.
But abuse of the pardon power qualifies  and using pardons to short-circuit an investigation that threatens the presidentâs political interests would be an abuse. Letâs hope  Trump  rejects this bad advice.
Starting in January  people who could not have pronounced "emoluments" a month previously were opining confidently that   [TGT] was violating the Constitutionâs clause about them. Now we're having to consider just how far  the presidentâs  pardon power runs.
  [TGT] has reportedly asked   [TGT]   aides that question. Now conservative lawyers David Rivkin and Lee Casey are urging  him  to use the pardon power expansively  to block prosecutors from investigating and charging "anyone involved in supposed collusion with Russia or Russians during the 2016 presidential campaign " including  the president himself . Their Wall Street Journal op-ed goes even further  advising pardons for anyone involved in arguably related Obama administration misconduct.
Whether the courts would be obliged to respect a presidential self-pardon is a disputed question. But letâs assume that judges could not review the pardons that Rivkin and Casey recommend  as they cannot review the vast run of pardons.   [TGT]   should restrain   [TGT]   from issuing these pardons even if   [TGT]   has the legal power to grant them â and even if   [TGT]   anger over special prosecutor Robert Muellerâs investigation of possible collusion between   [TGT]   campaign and Russia tempts   [TGT]   to make them.
Pardons all around wonât make for national harmony anyway. They would make the controversies already swirling around   [TGT] burn hotter. They would lead to more and louder calls for impeachment. And they should.
But abuse of the pardon power qualifies  and using pardons to short-circuit an investigation that threatens the presidentâs political interests would be an abuse. Letâs hope   [TGT]   rejects this bad advice.