Pardoning Power

Preemptive Pardons Essential To Protect Courageous Leaders!

Ronald Leave a comment

There is growing discussion of the concept of “preemptive” pardons being given by President Joe Biden, to a whole group of political figures who helped investigate and bring Donald Trump and others around him to legal accountability, particularly for the January 6 US Capitol Insurrection, but also other illegal activities.

The list could include all members of the January 6 House Committee that investigated the Insurrection, but also others who have been openly critical of Donald Trump over the years, which is legion in numbers.

The fear is that Donald Trump and his FBI nominee Kash Patel want revenge and retribution against political “enemies”, and even those in journalism and the media, which makes for a list that could be massive.

Clearly, not everyone who might be endangered by civil or criminal charges that might be brought by the FBI can be calculated, as to the risk of prosecution.

But beyond the list this author and blogger presented two days ago, there is real concern about such politically courageous figures as:

Liz Cheney
Adam Kinzinger
Adam Schiff
Jamie Raskin
General Mark Milley
Prosecutor Jack Smith

and innumerable Trump Administration employees who broke with Trump.

Even Dr Anthony Fauci, who had such a sterling career since Ronald Reagan onward, has become the target of those lunatics who think that the Pandemic and response to it was mishandled, a disgraceful lie!

And there is danger to the free press, including the NY Times, Washington Post, CNN, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, NBC, and PBS, among others.

We are entering dark times, brought about by the stupidity, ignorance, and self-centeredness of so many Americans, including people I know personally, who only care about “Me, Myself and I”, and not the nation at large.

At this rate, our American democracy, rule of law, and enforcement of the Constitution is in dire straits!

Six Months In, And Talk Of Pardons? Donald Trump Out Of Control, And A Danger To Constitutional Government!

Ronald 8 Comments

What is going on is unprecedented, Donald Trump and his staff discussing pardons, after just six months in office!

If there is nothing to hide, no wrong doing, why even discuss what makes it seems that Trump is guilty?

Why block an investigation if one knows he has done nothing that would require the thought of a pardon?

And why the arrogance that a President can pardon himself, when Richard Nixon thought of the idea in 1974, but decided it would make clear of his guilt, and he cared about his name in history?

It is clear that we are in a constitutional crisis far greater than even Richard Nixon forced upon us in 1973-1974.

We have an arrogant man who thinks he is like a King or an Emperor, and he needs to be told that the investigation by Robert Mueller will go forth, and that he had better not dare to have him fired, as that would be an admission of guilt.

At that point, the people around Trump need to resign, and Mike Pence needs to use the 25th Amendment Section 4, and become, at the least, Acting President, as the President will then face the Congress, even under the Republican Party, with the need to move forward on impeachment.

During that crisis period, Trump would be capable of irrational actions, including using nuclear weapons on North Korea, and contemplating martial law and suspension of the Bill of Rights and the Constitution.

Many would say this is hysteria, but it really is not so, and Mike Pence and the Republicans must put the nation above the President, and do what is right!

Bizarre, Rambling, Inconsistent, Forgetful, Raging Behavior: Signs Of Mental Illness And Possible Dementia Of Donald Trump!

Ronald 3 Comments

Donald Trump’s New York Times interview demonstrated to us signs of mental illness and possible dementia of our President.

It was truly bizarre behavior, including rambling, inconsistency, forgetfulness, and raging behavior against his Attorney General Jeff Sessions; Special Counsel Robert Mueller; Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein; and his expectation that the new FBI head Christopher Wray would be “loyal”, the reason why he fired former FBI head James Comey.

And now we learn that Trump is looking into pardons of his aides, his family, and even himself, not realizing that a pardon is an admission of guilt, and even Richard Nixon would not go that far, and refused to try to pardon himself, or his aides, as inappropriate behavior for a President.

Donald Trump is in a panic that Robert Mueller is investigating his financial dealings with Russia, and looking at his tax returns, which he has refused to allow, but can be accessed during an investigation of malfeasance.

The White House staff is stunned at his attacks on Sessions in particular, as no one was more loyal to Trump, but yet Sessions and Rosenstein have agreed to stay on, in itself a shocking and stunning decision, as Trump has no loyalty to anyone, and is only too willing to rant and rave, and throw them “under the bus”.

The world of Donald Trump is one of self aggrandizement, selfishness, greed, materialism, lack of concern for others, and projection, blaming others for his own faults.

The man is seriously mentally ill, and every day he stays in the Oval Office, the nation is endangered, and we have to face the facts that eventually a major foreign policy crisis will arise, and we will have a crippled President to deal with it, so this is an alarm bell that something must be done to resolve this constitutional crisis, and soon, before the country suffers a grievous disaster that affects all of us!

Obama Finally Gives Pardons Two Days After Subject Is Mentioned On This Blog! :)

Ronald Leave a comment

Just two days after this blog brought up the subject of Barack Obama not yet utilizing the pardon power, it has been announced that on Friday, the President gave out nine pardons, none of them particularly newsworthy!

At the same time, it was revealed that Obama denied 605 petitions for a commuted sentence and 71 requests for a pardon in the month of October, and denied 552 petitions for commuted sentences and 60 requests for a pardon in November!

By taking action on the nine petitions on December 3, however, Obama avoided setting a record for the longest time in office without issuing pardons, beating out George W. Bush by a few weeks—682 days in office, about three weeks earlier than Bush, who issued his first pardons late in December of his second year in office!

Interesting Statistic: Obama Has Pardoned Four Turkeys, But No Human Beings Yet After 22 Months In Office!

Ronald 1 Comment

A very interesting statistic has been uncovered: President Obama has yet to pardon any human being, although he has pardoned four turkeys over two Thanksgiving holidays!

This is a bit odd, and it makes one wonder why there have been no pardons, one of the great powers a President possesses!

The question is why President Obama has not used the pardon power, with some wondering if it is because giving pardons so often is a political issue, causing new controversies for a President, making one think that giving pardons at the end of a President’s time in office may often be the best strategy, since it cannot affect the President’s agenda as he finishes his term!

But yet, other Presidents have used the pardon power extensively all through the time they are in office!

The records show the following since World War II:

Harry Truman 1913
Dwight D. Eisenhower 1110
John F. Kennedy 472
Lyndon B. Johnson 960
Richard M. Nixon 863
Gerald Ford 382
Jimmy Carter 534
Ronald Reagan 393
George H W Bush 74
Bill Clinton 396
George W Bush 189

It is interesting how the number of pardons has declined rapidly since the high point under Truman and Eisenhower, and the two Bushes together granted very few pardons, particularly the senior Bush!

According to records, a total of 1,140 pardon petitions have been received under the Obama Administration, with 247 closed without action!

Other information makes it clear that 71 requests for pardons were denied just in the last month!

It will be of great interest to see how long Obama goes without granting pardons, and how many eventually will be given over his time in the White House!