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Presidential pardon power has jumped the shark

But Trump was not the only president accused of abusing the pardon power.

Before he left office, Biden granted preemptive blanket pardons to public servants, including former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, former top government infectious diseases official Dr. Anthony Fauci and lawmakers and staff who served on the House select committee that investigated the Capitol riot. Biden argued that his hand was forced by Trump’s vows of retribution against innocents. But the pardons further tarnished the reputation of a president who took office vowing to restore the integrity of the Justice Department but then pardoned his son Hunter after saying he wouldn’t.

 

Related articleBiden issues preemptive pardons for Trump critics and Biden family members

Biden also handed Trump an opening just 20 minutes before the end of his term by preemptively pardoning more family members, including his brothers James and Francis Biden and his sister Valerie. Biden said his kin had done nothing wrong but warned that “the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage their reputations and finances.”

Presidents have almost unlimited pardon power for federal matters. But by approving countless preemptive pardons in recent weeks, Biden has given Trump or any future president incentives to theoretically push staffers or relatives to break the law in the knowledge that they can get a pardon at the end of a term. This represents a huge potential expansion of presidential power, which the Founders never intended and which threatens to foster White House corruption.

Trump picked up on the implications immediately. “Now every president, when they leave office, they are going to pardon everyone they met,” he told reporters.