Presidential Self-Pardoning Power
Today’s political circumstances raise the possibility of a second pardon of a former (and perhaps future) president, Donald Trump. Currently on trial on state criminal charges in New York, the former president faces three more potential criminal trials before or after the upcoming presidential election. A second state court trial remains pending in Georgia, and two criminal cases remain pending on federal charges. The prospect of convictions in any of these cases raises an intriguing question: If Trump is re-elected in November, will he have the power to pardon himself? And even if he does, should he?