Cryptocurrency billionaires. Disgraced politicians. Reality TV stars. And hundreds of political allies.
Since taking office for a second term, United States President Donald Trump has issued more than 1,840 acts of clemency to a range of personalities.
Presidents have long stirred controversy in their choices of people to pardon. But experts argue that the way Trump has exercised his clemency power violates rules and norms in place for more than a century.
Now, they warn that pardons and commutations have become transactional, with Trump using them to reward those loyal to his agenda.
Some beneficiaries have been supporters of his “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement, including the hundreds of rioters who attacked the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Lol right? Everywhere we look, there’s volumes of “rules and norms” that would see us insta-fired and jailed if violated. Plenty of actions we could take would put us at the mercy of countless authorities and perhaps rightly ruin our lives.
But gee if you go high enough, the consequences are apparently just:
“Egad! Oh dear, how uncouth! Somebody should do something! Sir! We unfortunately feel forced to inform you that we find this behavior most distasteful! Excuse me sir are you listening? We disapprove, I say! We wag our fingers, sir!”