I didn't mind the pardoning of Hunter Biden, because he had already been through the prosecutorial wringer and found guilty; the problem was with the Republican party, who just wanted to parlay a fairly routine prosecution into full-blown Biden Crime Family scandal, and that merited a pardon.
I didn't mind the pardoning of Hunter Biden, because he had already been through the prosecutorial wringer and found guilty; the problem was with the Republican party, who just wanted to parlay a fairly routine prosecution into full-blown Biden Crime Family scandal, and that merited a pardon.
What I don't like is pardoning people, absent of any crime, because of Trump's threats. What do we mean when we say we should not obey in advance? Why should anyone, in effect, just plead guilty to avoid a trial, and always have that conviction on their record?
Just because the pardon power has been abused before doesn't justify abusing it now. In fact, there needs to be some restrictions on the pardon power, because it's turning into a means of granting legal immunity to one's political allies, and therefore a superhighway to unlimited corruption. Surely we don't want that.
No, Jeffrey, we don’t want any of that. But how do we put the toothpaste back in the tube? Trump’s ascension and reascension — with significant public support — suggests that the old rules no longer apply. Having one side still attempt to use and respect them while that her wantonly violates them without sanction (at least from the electorate) is a useless virtue display. Real people, real patriots get hurt. It’s no longer a fair fight. Even the Supreme Court is indicating it won’t uphold the old rules.
I didn't mind the pardoning of Hunter Biden, because he had already been through the prosecutorial wringer and found guilty; the problem was with the Republican party, who just wanted to parlay a fairly routine prosecution into full-blown Biden Crime Family scandal, and that merited a pardon.
What I don't like is pardoning people, absent of any crime, because of Trump's threats. What do we mean when we say we should not obey in advance? Why should anyone, in effect, just plead guilty to avoid a trial, and always have that conviction on their record?
Just because the pardon power has been abused before doesn't justify abusing it now. In fact, there needs to be some restrictions on the pardon power, because it's turning into a means of granting legal immunity to one's political allies, and therefore a superhighway to unlimited corruption. Surely we don't want that.
No, Jeffrey, we don’t want any of that. But how do we put the toothpaste back in the tube? Trump’s ascension and reascension — with significant public support — suggests that the old rules no longer apply. Having one side still attempt to use and respect them while that her wantonly violates them without sanction (at least from the electorate) is a useless virtue display. Real people, real patriots get hurt. It’s no longer a fair fight. Even the Supreme Court is indicating it won’t uphold the old rules.