Though Article II Section 2 of the US Constitution allows for presidential pardons on federal offenses, the last-minute pardon granted by the disgraced former President Donald Trump to his cronies and shady funders and supporters seem very questionable ethically and smacks of corruption of the highest order.
Trump granted a total of 143 pardons which were made public early Wednesday morning, or just before he was about to leave for his native state before the inaugural of incoming President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Last Hurrah
Just before he stepped out of the White House, he made public the list of 73 pardons and 70 commutation of sentences.
The list included his former chief strategist and longtime ally Steve Bannon (indicted in August for wire fraud and money laundering. He crowd-funded "We Build the Wall" campaign that raised over $25 million)) and his former top fundraiser Elliot Broidy (a former Republican National Committee finance chair who pleaded guilty in October to conspiring to violate foreign lobbying laws by looting a Malaysian state investment fund).
An hour before the swearing in of Biden, he pardoned Albert Pirro, Jr., the former husband of Fox News host and longtime ally Jeannine Pirro. Albert was convicted of conspiracy and tax evasion charges in 2000; Paul Erickson, a conservative operative who came under scrutiny during the investigation into the Russian election interference and wire fraud and money laundering;
Aviem Sella, an Israeli citizen who was indicted in March 1987 for recruiting convicted American spy Jonathan Jay Pollard to collect US military secrets for Israel and his full pardon was supported by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli ambassador to the US and the US ambassador to Israel;
Deborah, Gregory and Martin Jorgensen, who marketed and sold processed beef as a heart-healthy, antibiotic free and hormone-free thus charged with conspiracy to sell misbranded meat; Kwame Kilpatrick, former Detroit mayor who pleaded guilty of obstruction of justice and resigned from office in 2008 and many others.
Heinous Crimes
Most of those he granted full pardon were fraudsters in finance and banks, firearms violation, false declaration of official documents, tax evasion, arms smuggling, possession of illegal drugs and drug conspiracy, health care fraud, non- violent drug offenses, bribery, drug trafficking, failing to pay payroll taxes, defrauding Medicare; illegal offshore gaming operations; bank robberies; violations to wildlife laws; conspiracy to distribute cocaine and methamphetamines.
Federal Offenses
The president's pardon power is limited to federal offenses; the Constitution only grants the president the power to pardon offenses against the United States. An offense that violates state law, but not federal law, is just an offense against that state.
But the President cannot interfere with state prosecutions. Also, the pardoning power only extends to criminal offenses. It does not preclude civil actions.
In law, a commutation is the substitution of a lesser penalty for that given after a conviction for a crime.
Commutation Of Sentence
Unlike most pardons by government and overturning by the court (a full overturning is equal to an acquittal), a commutation does not affect the status of a defendant's underlying criminal conviction.
Although the authority was put in place to give presidents humanitarian authority to overturn wrongful convictions, to commute excessively harsh sentences to rehabilitated individuals, or make a gesture of mercy – many presidents have used the power as favors for supporters and allies.
Trump appears on track to carry on that tradition.
Future Crimes
Legal experts noted that a pardon does not overturn a conviction, it rather exempts the person of punishment – such as jail time or monetary fines – under that conviction.
Although most pardons are issued to people who have already been sentenced in court, they can also be pre-emptive, covering conduct that has not yet been prosecuted or led to a guilty verdict, but they cannot apply to crimes committed in the future.
Potential Cases vs The Trumps
Though Trump can and may pardon his adult children, Don Jr, Eric and Ivanka, all three of whom have taken on prominent roles working in the White House and for his campaign, none has been officially charged with any crimes.
Trump’s potential legal troubles stem from his alleged role in inciting his supporters to storm the US Capitol last January 6 with fiery one-hour speech.
The 'Hello, Brad' Call
A January 2 phone call to Georgia’s Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger could also land him in legal jeopardy.
During a leaked audio recording he was heard asking Raffensperger to “find” the votes he needed to win the state from Joe Biden – a move that could be interpreted as trying to intervene in an election, which is a violation of federal law.
Trump could also be ensnared in investigations of former associates or even new investigations being opened after he leaves office. However, there are multiple state and local investigations into Trump and his businesses that would not be covered by a presidential pardon.
Disgruntled Republicans
According to the New York Times, however, there are “no plans” for the outgoing president to pre-emptively pardon himself or his two adult sons.
Officials in the White House are concerned that if Trump does give himself a pardon it could turn more Republicans against him in the Senate where he is due to face an impeachment trial, the paper said.