The idea of waiting to send the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate is brilliant

[StarfishSaver]

71. No.

Even assuming he has the power to pardon himself - which I don't think he has - impeachment doesn't affect the president's pardon power, even when it comes to charges on which he was impeached.

He would still get the pension and security because those are guaranteed by statute - the Former Presidents Act - which provides those benefits to all former presidents except those who have been convicted and removed. Statutes like this are applied very strictly, so it would apply to him since he does not fall within that very narrow exception.

It probably never occurred to the drafters that a president could possibly be convicted but not removed since a sitting president is removed immediately and automatically upon conviction and they did not foresee a situation in which a former president is convicted after being impeached at the very end of his term and leaving office before the trial is completed.