Donald Trump

Trump Is Going To Abuse Pardons To Keep Russia Witnesses Quiet

It is being reported that the D’Souza pardon was intended to send a loud message to Mueller witnesses that if they keep quiet, Trump will pardon them.

Video:

Philip Rucker of The Washington Post said on MSNBC’s Deadline: White House, “The announcement came out of nowhere. There is actually sort of an ordinary process for pardons that begins at the justice department. There is an office of the pardon attorney and thousands of people will apply for a pardon there and that process makes its way to the white house and a presidential decision. But this president has made his pardon decisions personally and on his own and on his own timetable. Not through those normal channels. That’s why he pardoned sheriff Joe Arpaio in Arizona. That’s why he pardoned Scooter Libby and Dinesh D’Souza. It sent a message to the personal attorney and people ensnared, like national security advisor Mike Flynn that this president trump is willing to exercise his power of clemency to help out his friends and allies to prevent them from serving jail time or to pardon them after the fact. I talked to some people who are in Trump’s outer orbit who may become ensnared or are already witnesses in the Mueller probe who said that that signal was received loudly and clearly.”

If Trump can’t shut down Mueller, he is going to buy the silence of witnesses

The idea that Trump would hint at the promise of pardons to keep witnesses quiet is not surprising. If one believes that Trump has been boxed in and can’t fire Rosenstein, Mueller, etc., the next best step is to keep the witnesses quiet. One of the reasons why Paul Manafort hasn’t flipped on Trump could be because he believes that a presidential pardon is coming. The one flaw in the pardon strategy is that Trump has to be around to implement it.

Impeachment proceedings would derail Trump’s pardon plan, but before the nation can get there, it needs a Democratic Congress. It is one thing for Trump to pardon Martha Stewart or Joe Arpaio, it is another to see the president pardon people convicted of crimes in the Russia investigation.

Trump is abusing his pardon power, and he is planning on taking to the next level as a desperate gambit to stifle the Mueller investigation.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Me
Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements. Awards and  Professional Memberships Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association

Recent Posts

Trump And House GOP’s Promise To Not Cut Social Security Is Total Nonsense

Trump got House Republicans to not use reconciliation to cut Social Security. The problem is…

3 hours ago

Trump And Mike Johnson Agree To Apparently Cut Americans’ Healthcare To Pay For Tax Cuts For The Rich

President-elect Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson have agreed to a deal that would fund the…

3 hours ago

Dozens Of Republicans Humiliate Trump/Musk By Voting Down CR

Donald Trump demanded that the debt limit be raised as part of the government funding…

23 hours ago

Trump And Vance Blame Biden For Elon Musk Caused Chaos

Donald Trump and JD Vance are blaming President Biden for the havoc caused by Elon…

2 days ago

House Republicans Are Falling Apart And Now Mike Johnson Could Be Toast

The first little bit of pressure involving passing a bill to keep the government open…

2 days ago

Elon Musk Melts Down As House Republicans Show Him That He Has No Power

X boss Elon Musk is throwing a tantrum on his social media platform as House…

2 days ago