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President Donald Trump speaks to the press outside the Oval Office of the White House on June 1, 2018 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images)
'Very, Very Disturbing': Trump Asserts 'Absolute Right' to Pardon Himself
"You don't need to be a lawyer to understand why courts would never uphold a president's power to commit crimes and then pardon himself for them."
Jun 04, 2018
Echoing the tyrannical claim of his lawyer Rudy Giuliani in a Twitter outburst on Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that he has the "absolute right" to pardon himself--a statement legal experts said is both factually inaccurate and dangerous.
\u201cAs has been stated by numerous legal scholars, I have the absolute right to PARDON myself, but why would I do that when I have done nothing wrong? In the meantime, the never ending Witch Hunt, led by 13 very Angry and Conflicted Democrats (& others) continues into the mid-terms!\u201d— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1528115725
Responding to the president's tweet, former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti wrote, "You don't need to be a lawyer to understand why courts would never uphold a president's power to commit crimes and then pardon himself for them."
Other legal experts and commentators similarly disputed Trump's claim that he has a right to pardon himself--while also noting the "very, very disturbing" implications of the president's assertion.
\u201cJust noting that the logic of this tweet suggest that, if Trump did do something wrong, he would pardon himself. https://t.co/ucwoFND1Ow\u201d— Judd Legum (@Judd Legum) 1528117870
\u201cI thought the whole point was that we don't have a king. https://t.co/WOCzdB59q1\u201d— Zack Ford (@Zack Ford) 1528117070
On January 20th, it begins...
Political revenge. Mass deportations. Project 2025. Unfathomable corruption. Attacks on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Pardons for insurrectionists. An all-out assault on democracy. Republicans in Congress are scrambling to give Trump broad new powers to strip the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit he doesn’t like by declaring it a “terrorist-supporting organization.” Trump has already begun filing lawsuits against news outlets that criticize him. At Common Dreams, we won’t back down, but we must get ready for whatever Trump and his thugs throw at us. Our Year-End campaign is our most important fundraiser of the year. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. By donating today, please help us fight the dangers of a second Trump presidency. |
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Echoing the tyrannical claim of his lawyer Rudy Giuliani in a Twitter outburst on Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that he has the "absolute right" to pardon himself--a statement legal experts said is both factually inaccurate and dangerous.
\u201cAs has been stated by numerous legal scholars, I have the absolute right to PARDON myself, but why would I do that when I have done nothing wrong? In the meantime, the never ending Witch Hunt, led by 13 very Angry and Conflicted Democrats (& others) continues into the mid-terms!\u201d— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1528115725
Responding to the president's tweet, former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti wrote, "You don't need to be a lawyer to understand why courts would never uphold a president's power to commit crimes and then pardon himself for them."
Other legal experts and commentators similarly disputed Trump's claim that he has a right to pardon himself--while also noting the "very, very disturbing" implications of the president's assertion.
\u201cJust noting that the logic of this tweet suggest that, if Trump did do something wrong, he would pardon himself. https://t.co/ucwoFND1Ow\u201d— Judd Legum (@Judd Legum) 1528117870
\u201cI thought the whole point was that we don't have a king. https://t.co/WOCzdB59q1\u201d— Zack Ford (@Zack Ford) 1528117070
Echoing the tyrannical claim of his lawyer Rudy Giuliani in a Twitter outburst on Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that he has the "absolute right" to pardon himself--a statement legal experts said is both factually inaccurate and dangerous.
\u201cAs has been stated by numerous legal scholars, I have the absolute right to PARDON myself, but why would I do that when I have done nothing wrong? In the meantime, the never ending Witch Hunt, led by 13 very Angry and Conflicted Democrats (& others) continues into the mid-terms!\u201d— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1528115725
Responding to the president's tweet, former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti wrote, "You don't need to be a lawyer to understand why courts would never uphold a president's power to commit crimes and then pardon himself for them."
Other legal experts and commentators similarly disputed Trump's claim that he has a right to pardon himself--while also noting the "very, very disturbing" implications of the president's assertion.
\u201cJust noting that the logic of this tweet suggest that, if Trump did do something wrong, he would pardon himself. https://t.co/ucwoFND1Ow\u201d— Judd Legum (@Judd Legum) 1528117870
\u201cI thought the whole point was that we don't have a king. https://t.co/WOCzdB59q1\u201d— Zack Ford (@Zack Ford) 1528117070
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