Again and again in Donald Trump’s Washington, it’s about who you know.
That was the case Wednesday night with the President’s latest wave of pardons as he prepares to leave the White House. Most everyone on the list either had a connection to the Big Man themselves or friends in high places willing to make their case.
And Republican outrage had no end when Bill Clinton pardoned Mark Rich , after incessant demands from Israel. Will any Republican speak up against any of these pardons? Anyone? Buehler?
This is typical of Trump World: attack. Using the most glaringly loathsome actions.
And flaunt these actions
But Trump will not be issuing pardons on 21 January 2021
You just know he will pardon Julius and Ethel Rosenberg as soon as someone tells him who they were.
I have the feeling there are about 74 million pardons waiting to be issued.
For voting (for a) fraud.
Where in the name of God is Elliot Ness?
All these criminals running free in our country.
I heard an interesting comment this morning on WNYC - that the use of pardons for white-collar crimes diminishes the import of those crimes vis a vis violent crimes. The power to pardon is fundamentally about compassion for those whose lives went so terribly wrong they committed egregious acts of violence but nonetheless merit redemption. By only focusing on old-fashioned graft and fraud and setting up your brother-in-law in a pornographic sting, Trump shows us what counts and what doesn’t.
For the record, I was none too happy with Clinton’s pardon of Mark Rich and Obama’s of Chelsea Manning.
What does the Federalist Society think of all this? Was it the intention of the founders to use the pardon as a way to say thanks to all the people who got caught grifting for you while in office?
At this point, I’d settle for Inspector Clouseau. Or Maxwell Smart.
Every day he gets away with more and more. For a guy like Trump, why not go all the way?
Why they believe that Republicans are above the law!!!
Two suggestions to address this horrifying abuse of presidential power: First, a simple amendment to the pardon clause in Article III of the Constitution, to wit:
The President “shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment. Congress shall have power to create rules and standards for the exercise of this power and to enforce said rules and standards by appropriate legislation.”
Second, indict Trump for abuse of power, crimes against the Constitution, violation of his oath of office, and crimes against humanity. The Office of Legal Counsel prohibiting prosecution of a sitting President be damned, it is nothing but an opinion by a number of ill-advised and sycophantic attorneys and should be ruled as inconsistent with the concept of "equal justice under law."
The Marc Rich pardon was not just for Israel. It was for the New York Department of Taxation and Finance, which wanted to collect on hundreds of millions of back taxes owed by Rich. (Marc Rich didn’t go to jail for tax law or securities violations, but for violating the embargo laws for oil imports. This was subsequently legalized under the Reagan administration, and involves trading in Iranian (or wherever) oil futures for futures against someone else’s oil futures from a non-embargoed country. Rich, a prominent Republican conservative, also had a nasty divorce from his wife Denise. who took him to the cleaners for about $500 million, which more than funded her songwriting career. (She didn’t make out too badly at that, she did the score for “First Wives Club” – most appropriate IMO.) Following the political demographics of a wealthy divorced woman, she became a Democrat and then started raising money for them, befriending Bill Clinton in the process. She also changed her mind to advocate for the pardon because Marc Rich couldn’t visit his daughter’s grave as he would have been arrested.
It’s the intent of the Federalist Society to do so. After all, only the best people…
I hear they’ve been doing great things.
Look on the bright side.
As noted by Kelly Loffler, now that insider trading by Senators wasn’t banned, the American dream remains secure.
By giving Americans who are desperate for food, shelter and safety from the Corona virus, a lump of coal for Christmas, the GOP has finally won the war on Christmas. With the tweets of Trump now having replaced Jesus among the most fervent Trump-leaning GOP voters, a new GOP era can be proclaimed.
I’ve read a few of the Fed Papers, and their belief was that Mostly The Best People would go into politics to serve the country. The few baddies would be restrained by the rest and ousted by the voters. They apparently had no clue that an entire political party would turn against democcratic government itself.
Trump has committed many crimes. Avoiding further commission of crimes has little benefit to him at this time. The successful commission of crimes to avoid all accountability and when he’s at his maximum power is highly optimal for him. This is where we are.
May he be executed by the state in a sober proceeding similar to that undergone by the Rosenbergs for his aggrieved and unprecedentedly severe acts of treason against our nation. Thank you Santa.
This is your law and order, folks. Get a gooooooood look at it while it lasts.
Well, at least David Purdue and Kelly Loffler are smiling and laughing all the way to the bank. They are on Trump’s pre-emptive pardon short list to protect them and other inside traders. After all, insider traders need protection. As pointed out by Kelly Loffler, insider trading is the essence of the American dream.