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The Pardon Game, Or One Last Way Bush Will Outdo His Dad
AngelHedgie
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Registered User regular
So, as we all know, the 44th President of the United States will be Barack Obama. That considered, what does that mean for ol' 43? Well, if his dad is any indication, it's going to mean pardons.
Lots of them.
The main reason for this is that if he doesn't pardon his upper echelon of advisors and such, he could very quickly find them willing to turn state's evidence against him - not exactly a position he'd want to be in. So expect to see a nice little flurry of the precious papers around Christmas.
Now, the big question is - is it legal? And interestingly, the fact that the Bush DoJ refused to prosecute any crimes may actually work AGAINST them in the long run. While the right of the president to issue pardons for specific accusations and to issue blanket pardons for tightly defined actions has been upheld, a blanket pardon for a wide range of conduct is much more of a legal question. It's possible that such pardons could be successfully challenged - in which case, the Obama DoJ might find themselves in a target-rich environment.
So who do you think will get the precious? And do you think they'll withstand legal scrutiny?
Lots of them.
The main reason for this is that if he doesn't pardon his upper echelon of advisors and such, he could very quickly find them willing to turn state's evidence against him - not exactly a position he'd want to be in. So expect to see a nice little flurry of the precious papers around Christmas.
Now, the big question is - is it legal? And interestingly, the fact that the Bush DoJ refused to prosecute any crimes may actually work AGAINST them in the long run. While the right of the president to issue pardons for specific accusations and to issue blanket pardons for tightly defined actions has been upheld, a blanket pardon for a wide range of conduct is much more of a legal question. It's possible that such pardons could be successfully challenged - in which case, the Obama DoJ might find themselves in a target-rich environment.
So who do you think will get the precious? And do you think they'll withstand legal scrutiny?
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Not that that makes it morally right.
There's a difference between what Clinton did (pardoned major fundraisers) and what Bush pere did (pardoned people that could potentially have fingered him re: Iran-Contra.)
Guess which example fits better.
One pardoned people who donated to him.
One pardoned people who could put him in jail if they turned state's evidence.
I'd say there's a vast difference there.
Karl Rove still hasn't been jailed for contempt.
Mainly because the Bush DoJ won't do it. You think Obama's AG is going to not toss his ass in jail?
That would be funny. Held in contempt because you were pardoned.
I'm going bold and predicting that G.W. Bush will first pardon Charles Manson.
Just to see the look on everyone's faces as they then ignore his other pardons.
And is there a legal method for challenging a Presidential pardon? I thought they were pretty much set it stone, especially after Ford got away with pardoning Nixon for pretty much everything he even might have done while in office.
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Yes - Carter's pardon of draft dodgers stood. However, that pardon was for a specific action - a blanket pardon for nebulously defined actions may not stand legal scrutiny.
Since someone else would be occupying 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Yup, I think there will be no legal actions taken against members of the previous administration. There may be an "investigation" or an "inquiry", but no actual blood.
And pardons shouldn't exist.
Clinton pardoned people in his own cabinet that he had lie to the FBI, sounds like same shit different day. There were almost 20,000 pardons/commutations during the 20th century and I'm pretty sure very few of them were done for altruistic reasons.
And so fourth...
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Fuck. Like father, like son, it seems.
Do real pardons work like in the movies at all?
I thought to be worth the paper they are written on presidential pardons have to have a legitimate reason, like "I asked him to do such and such for me and although it broke the law he was only trying to serve his country doing as his president asked, so let him out of jail/you can't prosecute him"
And I, as president, only asked this of him for the betterment of our country...blah blah blah
I don't think it would fly if presidents just pardoned random people....
Tell me again how many investigations there were into Clinton Administration officials? Seriously, you investigated him up, down, left, and right, and you had to build your case on him based on a stained dress. To even suggest what you are is to laugh.
Well, Ford pardoned Nixon (a mistake, I think, though I understand his thinking.) No, the president has the power to pardon anyone he feels fit to.
He's been doing that for eight years.
No, but he can pardon a Ken Lay who is in hiding.
Mildly off topic, but the last decent article I read in Harper's was from a couple years ago, and it was about Ford's pardon of Nixon. I thought it was a really good read, and shed some light on the pardoning process, including the reasoning used to establish exactly how far the president's power to pardon extended.
Linky?