Trump's pardons reveal his corruption of the rule of law
In announcing seven pardons and four commutations of convicted federal criminals on Tuesday, President Trump did not pretend to have followed a fair, deliberative process. Rather, he made clear the pardons were a function of his whim, based on which celebrity or personal friend caught his ear, who got on Fox News to appeal to him, or who gave money to the Trump cause.
“You know, oftentimes — pretty much all the time — I really rely on the recommendations of people that know them,” Mr. Trump explained. The White House stressed that high-profile recipients of the president’s favor, such as former junk bond king Michael Milken, were backed by an array of Trump associates.
The president noted that he pardoned former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich (D), who was convicted of attempting to sell a seat in the U.S. Senate, in part because he watched Mr. Blagojevich’s wife appeal to him on television. He also admitted that he developed sympathy for Mr. Blagojevich because he saw in the former governor’s prosecution similarities to the investigations of Mr. Trump’s own behavior. “It was a prosecution by the same people — Comey, Fitzpatrick [sic] — the same group,” he said, referring to James B. Comey and Patrick Fitzgerald. It should not be forgotten that investigators had audio recordings of Mr. Blagojevich discussing his corrupt plot to profit personally from his official appointment powers.
Then there was the case of Paul Pogue, who was convicted of failing to pay about half a million dollars in taxes and sentenced to three years probation. Mr. Trump pardoned him after he and his family gave hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts to the Trump Victory Committee.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trumps-pardon-message-all-favors-depend-on-me/2020/02/19/b0c7a32a-5348-11ea-9e47-59804be1dcfb_story.html
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