is the blog of an Orthodox Christian and is published under the spiritual patronage of St. John of San Francisco. Topics likely to be discussed include matters relating to Orthodoxy as well as other religious confessions, politics, economics, social issues, current events or anything else which interests me. © 2006-2024
Monday, December 02, 2024
Biden Pardons His Son
Yes, Trump has abused the power of the pardon, and is all but certain to do so again once he regains office. But that is neither here nor there. Biden's intervention on behalf of his son, after explicitly promising not to, was an outrageous act of personal and official corruption. The scandalous perversion of this constitutional prerogative by two successive presidents from different parties further suggests we may be entering a period where the traditional norms and guardrails that have kept presidents from flagrantly misusing their powers might be crumbling. Making matters worse, Mr. Trump has already made it crystal clear he intends to use that power to shield his allies and followers from criminal prosecution, including those who at Trump's instigation attacked the Capitol on January 6th, 2021. How will Democrats be able to criticize such abuses when their own leader is as guilty?
Yes this is shocking, but not surprising. A quibble or two:
ReplyDeleteIt's not entirely unprecedented. The big bundle of pardons that Bill Clinton issued on his way out was certainly corrupt.
Secondly, I am not sure that Biden is "as guilty" as Trump (particularly if (which I do not doubt) he proceeds with the bulk January 6 pardons). Of course Biden's corrupt pardon is of the same corrupt nature as Trump's, but does not match Trump's pardons in scale (FWIW).
I honestly wanted the gun charge to be appealed to the Supreme Court. I think Hunter could have won a great victory for the 2nd amendment. The form we all have to fill out asks us to self-incriminate (Question 11.e: “Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?”). That is unconstitutional.
ReplyDelete