All the President’s Pardons
Infamous recipients of presidential clemency, and what their pardoned crimes tell us about Trump
The presidential pardon is an anachronistic remnant of monarchical times that, much like the Electoral College, has no place in the 21st century. It should be abolished.
Contrary to what some may argue, the pardon power does not act as an executive check on judicial decisions. As a matter of fact, the president can grant blanket pardons on all crimes that have been or may have been committed (Ford’s pardon of Nixon). The executive does not use such a pardon to override an abusive decision by the third branch of government. It is an obstructive act designed to prevent the administration of justice from even taking place.
Pardons can also be granted as rewards by a criminally corrupt president to his crooked abetters. In such a situation, a pardon becomes an incentive to act against the law and for the president. This has been demonstrated time and time over by Donald Trump.
Whether the Founding Fathers were naïve in their assessment of human nature or whether they didn’t want to limit their own presidential unknown is a question that will never be answered. What we do know, however, is that the founders clearly favoured drama over efficiency when it came to the…
