Donald Trump hasn’t even been elected and yet people close to him are already talking about using the pardon power as a breathtaking political tool. We have already been stunned by how Donald Trump abused one of the most sacred executive acts and appears willing to do so again, if his son Eric is any indication of priorities.
Very few administrations ever issued controversial pardons. But as in so many other ways Trump was unique in his abuse of the pardon process causing serious worry. Consider the possible abuse during a one-term presidency with no concern about impeachment checking him from Congress, nor ever again facing the voters. It is dire. Some people have no reason to fear atrociously illegal acts while others might be terrorized for nothing more than being liberal.
Donald Trump actually did wonderfully pardon some people who were long deserving – usually famous people or very deserving people whose cause was taken up by celebrities. It was one of the few truly great elements of his administration.
But Trump also abused the pardon process like no other president, going around DOJ’s office, putting the pardon file in Jared Kushner’s hands. Trump may have loved the pardon power because its the single most powerful act a president can execute – anytime, anywhere, he can simply use a pen, it’s done, no one can question it, it’s forever, and the only check on the president would be impeachment which is not a thing anymore. No wonder Trump loves it.
The pardon power is supposed to be confined to acts of mercy. It is not used to free political pals. There was a point not long ago that such an exercise would lead to immediate impeachment – within days. Trump commuted Roger Stone’s sentence (Commutation allows the preservation of his 5th Amendment rights, he wouldn’t have to testify against himself – preserving Trump). Stone could have been a co-conspirator and a witness against Trump. There has never been a more obvious and sinister use of the pardon power – even the office of the president, as to self-interest.
So we better pay attention when the pardon process and use of pardons is already being talked about in Right-wing circles. The anticipatory nature of holding that powerful pen again is breathtaking as to possible abuses – he’s not even elected yet! But Eric Trump thinks he knows someone who deserves a pardon because “lawfare” – or something. Eric believes Hunter Biden should be pardoned. Check out Eric’s explanation because he first goes through all the reasons that Hunter should definitely not be pardoned before he gets to his real reason:
What’s he selling? Yeah, right. And we all know the answer to the question. Right? I’m asking rhetorical questions at this point. But, you know, why do you need 50 shell entities like, you know what, what product are you? You know, you’re not selling these beautiful hats. You’re not selling t-shirts. You’re not a media company. You’re not selling ads. Know, what the hell are you selling?
Wait, wait, wait. Hunter Biden is a Yale Law grad – at least highly qualified, unlike maybe Eric. No question, though – Hunter has been “selling” consulting services his entire life – most of them highly controversial as access or cashing in on his last name. Everyone knows what Hunter’s selling. It’s a long Washington tradition – which doesn’t make it okay but not necessarily illegal – only unethical. He is being prosecuted for tax issues and buying a gun. He probably doesn’t deserve a pardon, especially if sentenced lightly like others similarly situated.
Very notably, President Biden has not pardoned Hunter, leaving him to go through the trial process and concurrent legal bills. It is still possible that Biden will pardon Hunter on the morning of January 20th 2025. Given all Hunter has gone through, it might not even be wrong to do so – only probably so. But Eric Trump wants his father to pardon Hunter for reasons that have nothing to do with Hunter. Eric went on:
But despite that, I think we get in a very, very dangerous spot if we create a kind of a precipice where you just go after everybody’s children, their wives, their family, What’s going to end up actually happening in this country? It’s already happened. You’re not going to have any good candidates because everybody’s going to say, I’m not signing up for this crap.
So, hang on. Perhaps Eric hadn’t noticed but the Trump rascals were the only “kids” to ever act as spokespeople for the candidate/president. Moreover, no one has accused Eric of a crime – only the Trump Organization as a corporation (For which there was a lot of evidence). So for Eric to compare himself to Hunter – who has been tried for crimes, probably appropriately – and then assert that it’s all unfair, is extremely weird.
Additionally, pardoning Hunter Biden would be politically perilous for Biden, Harris (Possibly) or Trump (Possibly). If Joe Biden pardoned his son it would be naked favoritism as the answer to primarily a political prosecution (Who would have heard of Hunter’s crimes otherwise?). If Harris does it, it’s a favor to the man who lifted her into office. But if Trump gives Hunter a pardon it would almost surely be done to give himself cover to pardon many other friends and when accused of abusing the process point to Hunter to demonstrate his fairness.
The pardon issue is just another element of the poisonous modern political environment. When Bill Clinton pardoned Marc Rich (Campaign donor) on January 20th, 2001 it was shockingly controversial on a day that should have been about a new president. One wonders if it would garner any media attention or would it even be expected from Joe Biden… And absolutely certain from Donald Trump. Trump pardoned possible co-conspirators. Obviously, Trump would pardon someone with big money.
For Eric to say that political “lawfare” would keep people from running for office is special. His father wrought whole changes over the norms under Obama and ushered in a more vicious political climate. His father’s need for vengeance and grievances (Along with his followers) intimidate all but his bravest opponents. At times it seems like all dissenters are marked as “enemies” to be dealt with like “vermin.”
Eric needs to shut up about the political climate. His father drained the swamp in order to free some dangerous things.
God Bless:Â I can be reached at [email protected] and @JasonMiciak
After all that has been done to Hunter Biden by the magats, President BIDEN should pardon his son. Screw the magats and all the rest of them. Hunter should never have been put through what he has gone through. He paid his taxes, fines, penalties, etc. and should not go to jail for something that NO OTHER PERSON, as I understand it, has been imprisoned for. The gun charge is total bs.
Yes, there has been no similar prosecution by the DOJ of anyone whose last name is not Biden who had already paid their penalties and corrected such violations. The entire thing was dragged out for political spectacle by the Trump Administration for the GOP MAGAts to revel in and was continued under the Biden Administration to bend over backwards to show the exact opposite – no appearance of political favoritism.
Funny how you will never hear a single MAGAt mention Donald Trump, Jr. was arrested for public intoxication and spent 24 hours in a New Orleans jail cell from February 25-26, 2001. Arrest record here: https://americablog.com/2020/07/donald-trump-jr-s-arrest-record-is-now-public.html
President Biden has stated privately that he will pardon Hunter Biden about 1 month after the election has been called – in December or January, before he leaves office. And contrary to what Jason Miciak states in this article: (1) It’s the right thing to do; and (2) Joe Biden pardoning Hunter Biden would be politically perilous for Biden. Joe Biden shall not be running for any political office ever again and this is a perfect example of what the Presidential Pardon power was established for.
The thing about accepting a pardon is that doing so is legally (per two SCOTUS precedents from back in the 1800s) an admission of guilt. Eric is a doofus but probably has been told or read about it given the controversy over some of the people his father has pardoned. Mike Flynn or Steve Bannon for example. Having accepted pardons doesn’t legally remove their crimes from being taken into account in any future legal proceedings. In fact it reinforces their criminal history which can ENHANCE a sentence if convicted of something new!
For that reason alone Hunter Biden might not actually want a pardon. Due to the activism of the second amendment types there’s a chance that his gun conviction will eventually be overturned/thrown out. That would erase that from his record. Granted, conservatives who have fought having that particular question (and some others) on the ATF form would be furious that a Democrat got the benefit of their efforts but there you are. And the plain fact is that Hunter’s prosecution on this charge is if not unique, one of literally only a handful that have ever been brought simply for lying about drug use on on that form without it being part of a larger case involving use of a gun in another crime(s).
As for the tax charges those too were settled with the IRS years ago. Hunter paid his back taxes and penalities and the prosecutions of them have been purely political. He and countless other well-off people and even not all that well-off have been allowed to settle their debt with the IRS via the Civil process. Yet conservatives demanded their pound of flesh and the blood in it as well so that mess has continued. Someday that too might be turned back into a CLOSED Civil case by an appeals court.
Given that Hunter, who lest we forget was a talented lawyer (one can debate his ethics but he proved to be damned good at navigating international law and business) probably doesn’t want a pardon. Even from his father.
Eric is fearful because he might one day in fact find himself on the hook for criminal charges. So, he wants President Biden to set the precedent for Presidents pardoning members of their own families.
I figured it was a self-serving motive that preceded Eric blabbing his vast knowledge of “lawfare.” (Another new term for the language of MAGA.) And I expect one of the tRump Campaign’s “legal dragonflies” put Eric up to it. He couldn’t have written the speech himself, although the term “lawfare” could easily have been his creation!
“His father drained the swamp in order to free some dangerous things.”
I must disagree, he, in no way, drained the swamp. Instead he pumped it full of sewage to encourage the mutantcies occurring.
He didn’t drain it, he trawled it for supporters.
That is kind of what I meant.
If Hunter Biden wanted to do the classy thing, he’d refuse a trump pardon and tell him to stick it up his ass.
Eric just trying to get brownies points for when daddy gets locked up. Trumps game is falling apart. And Eric knows what happens if Kamala gets elected.