Donald Trump Will Likely Try To Self-Pardon To Avoid ‘Ego Blow,’ Author Says

Progressive radio personality and author Thom Hartmann predicted on Sunday that Donald Trump would likely seek to pardon himself and pushed back against predictions that the president would seek clemency from Mike Pence.

“Trump may resign for Pence to pardon him, but that’ll be an ego blow, so probably not. He’ll probably try to self-pardon instead, hoping Amy Covid Barrett, et al, will support him,” he tweeted.

Trump’s ego is often mentioned in criticism of his leadership, especially as he continues to refuse to concede. Per The Independent, George Conway recently slammed the U.S. leader as “deranged” and urged him to stop soothing his ego as the United States continues to experience an increase in deaths from the coronavirus.

Earlier in his Sunday tweet, Hartmann suggested that Trump could be removed from office via the 25th Amendment after being deemed unfit for the presidency. However, the author suggested it would not likely happen as it must be initiated by the vice president and requires support from the majority of the cabinet.

Debate continues to swirl around the question of whether Trump has the power to pardon himself. A Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel opinion dated August 5, 1974, claims that it is not possible. But the courts have never been tested on the issue, which makes it unfamiliar legal ground. Given the unprecedented nature of Trump’s presidency, some news outlets have suggested that the president will attempt to pardon himself and his allies.

In an op-ed for The Week, Matthew Walther argued that Trump would likely attempt to offer himself clemency before leaving the White House, but noted there are some downsides that might not be appealing to the president.

“Trump might be immune from federal prosecution for supposed crimes committed during or even well before his term in office, but he would still be legally obligated to answer questions in any future showboating hearings House Democrats choose to conduct on pain of charges for contempt. This is something he would probably prefer to avoid.”

Nevertheless, Walther argued that a self-pardon would also help Joe Biden, who could avoid having to make a decision on Trump’s prosecution himself and leave it up to state-level authorities and investigations.

Whether he pardons himself or not, Trump has already given National Security Adviser Michael Flynn clemency and is expected to provide others with pardons as well. As The Inquisitr reported, Judge Reggie Walton argued that Judge Emmet Sullivan could rule that the head of state’s pardon of Flynn was too broad.