President Trump issued a full and unconditional pardon to DC, police lieutenant Andrew Zabavsky and officer Terence Sutton for their roles in the death and cover-up of 20-year-old Mr Hylton-Brown
“No, the opposite. In fact, I’m going to be letting two officers from Washington police DC, I believe they’re from DC, but I just approved it,” Trump said. “They were arrested, put in jail for five years, because they went after an illegal, and I guess something happened where something went wrong and they arrested the two officers and put them in jail for going after a criminal. A rough criminal, by the way. And I’m actually releasing… no I’m the friend, I am the friend of police more than any president who’s ever been in this office.”
Everyone is "an illegal" now if it's politically convenient.
It is likely that the vast majority of what he is signing was someone else's idea. Maybe he agrees with it, maybe he is just doing it because he was complimented when it was handed to him, but it is extremely unlikely that he initiated more than a few of the things he has signed.
Yeah, but also despite being born with a penis, and making no attempt to ever change my gender, I’m now legally a female. And so are you if you’re an American.
This is getting stupid .... why the hell does the US allow pardons in the first place? ... it's now just used as a political tool to hand out pardons for propaganda and promotion.
Justice and Law is slowly evaporating because it is all hinging on what ruler is power and whether or not they will pardon whoever is most convenient to pardon.
A lot of loopholes now used were because they knew it was an imperfect start and assumed that when problems were found or new laws needed the Constitution would be changed. In some cases we've done that, in many we haven't. I think one of the founders wanted to include mandatory revisions over a period, but again the general presumption was that we'd see the need and do it without being forced to.
It goes back to the royal prerogative of mercy, an English tradition. Because the forefather's mostly made a parliamentary monarchy, but with some democratic ideas mixed in.
Maybe a stupid question, but: How broad are the presidential pardon powers?
Could he pre-emptively pardon anyone who will kill person X?
Could he blanket-pardon all cops convicted of a crime while on duty?
Could he pardon himself for all crimes past, present and future?
seems like preemptive ones and reflexive ones havent been tested but we are probably about to find out what happens when the prez, congress, and judiciary are all politically aligned and wanna do evil.