Harvard Constitutional Law professor Laurence Tribe was a guest on The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell last night, argued that Trump’s pardons to absolve the crimes of his friends might be crimes themselves if they’re issued to obstruct justice. Tribe explained to Lawrence O’Donnell why it’s important for the next administration to investigate and prosecute those abuses of power: “We can only move ahead if we ensure some degree of accountability for someone who has been a criminal in office.”
The interview was prompted by Tribe’s op-ed in the Financial Times (which I cannot excerpt for you here). Read the full op-ed, Donald Trump’s pardons must not obstruct justice.
Trump’s pardons of his co-conspirators, Roger Stone and Paul Manafort, two of the original members of the GOP “ratfuckers,” clearly falls into the category of corrupt pardons to obstruct justice. Trump dangled pardons during the Mueller investigation to obtain their silence and noncooperation. Both Stone and Manafort lied to the Mueller investigation and failed to cooperate, even after Manafort had signed a witness cooperation agreement. The quid pro quo of the crime was completed when Trump granted these two “ratfuckers” their pardon. (This was among the obstruction of justice elements outlined in the Mueller report).
Now that Stone and Manafort can no longer assert a Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination, prosecutors can force them to testify — or they can choose to commit a new crime by refusing to testify or lying to prosecutors, for which they are not pardoned.
Paul Manafort’s Ukraine partner, Rick Gates has been lobbying Trump for a pardon. Roger Stone has been lobbying Trump to pardon Julian Assange of Wikileaks.
I fully expect Trump to corruptly pardon everyone involved in his 2016 election collusion scheme with the Russians. He will also preemptively pardon the members of his Trump crime family, giving them a “get out of jail free” card.
This only applies to federal charges. The state of New York is free to prosecute the Trump crime family under state law.
Contrary to what Trump believes, he cannot pardon himself. As Tribe explains, Richard Nixon’s justice department opined in 1974 that a self-pardon is not within the president’s constitutional power. It also violates the centuries-old tenet that no one can be a judge in his own case. (Nemo judex in causa sua is a Latin phrase that means, literally, “no one is judge in his own cause.”)
In Burdick v. United States, 236 U.S. 79 (1915), the U.S. Supreme court held that acceptance of a pardon carries “an imputation of guilt, acceptance a confession of it.” In pardoning himself, Trump would be confessing to his guilt, and thumbing his nose at the rule of law. “Whadaya going to do about it?” Set it aside in court.
If Trump really wants to close the Russia investigation circle, he should pardon the Russian intelligence officers indicted by Robert Mueller. I dare him.
Tell us how you really feel, judge. “Federal judge in Iowa ridicules Trump’s pardons,” https://apnews.com/article/iowa-iowa-city-crime-campaigns-political-corruption-969e1ced04b53755d841a1dd4b1a3429
“It’s not surprising that a criminal like Trump pardons other criminals,” senior U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt of the Southern District of Iowa told The Associated Press in a brief phone interview Monday. In a bit of humor, he said: “But apparently to get a pardon, one has to be either a Republican, a convicted child murderer or a turkey.”
Pratt made the remarks when asked for comment on pardons granted to two former top aides for Ron Paul’s 2012 presidential campaign, who were convicted in a corruption scheme related to the Iowa caucuses.
Trump last week pardoned Paul campaign chairman Jesse Benton and campaign manager John Tate, who were convicted at trial of concealing $73,000 in payments that went to state Sen. Kent Sorenson in exchange for Sorenson’s endorsement of Paul. Benton and Tate were sentenced to six months of home confinement and probation.
Pratt oversaw Sorenson’s case, sentencing him to 15 months in prison in 2017 even though prosecutors recommended probation after Sorenson pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate. Sorenson’s testimony helped convict Benton, Tate and former Paul deputy campaign manager Dimitri Kesari.
Pratt did not oversee the trio’s trials. But he issued a lengthy opinion detailing his reasoning for sending Sorenson to prison, saying Monday, “I couldn’t believe what was going on.”
Pratt noted in the opinion that Sorenson took secret payments — $133,000 from the Bachmann and Paul campaigns — while serving as a state official. He said those who abuse positions of public trust for personal gain must face severe consequences, in order to deter misconduct and promote public confidence.
Otherwise, he warned, “political corruption will slowly corrode the foundations of our democracy until it collapses under its own weight.”
Did you read my story on pardons,
Blue Meanie?
I also quote Tribe on O’Donnell.
I went back and read it. I wasn’t reading anything while I was in the hospital, I was a little preoccupied. I wanted to comment on the interview I saw last night. I hope this post compliments your post.