Tribe: Any Argument That Trump Can Pardon Himself Would Be ‘Incompatible’ With The Constitution

Laurence Tribe tells Lawrence O’Donnell that if Trump tried to pardon himself, his argument would not hold up in court because it goes against the principle that no one is above the law: “If that were the case, then the president would not be below the law, he’d be above it.” Aired on 12/4/2020.
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Tribe: Any Argument That Trump Can Pardon Himself Would Be ‘Incompatible’ With The Constitution

96 comments

    1. Trump and Moscow Mitch is guilty of treason, (owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000;) Georgia Republicans -“Don’t vote for the Republicans in Georgia” Republicans Election has already been decided you lost, your top Republican officials are telling you not to vote in the Georgia runoff maybe listen to them ? #stoptrumpCOUP #trumptreason Trump is still president and 100% responsible for these deaths from Covid , stop the trump virus COUP ,all of trumps money comes from Russia , all the proof is in Trumps taxes still not released ❤️

    2. Lawrence Tribe is grotesquely over-rated. When he does these public appearances he is speaking more as a politician than a legal scholar.

    1. @dane great if you think it’s because he loves his people/country and not power/greed, you are very delusional, sorry not sorry.

  1. Trump is involved with his own case of impeachment and seeks to avoid further investigation of himself or his co-conspirators.

    1. @Jason McIntosh it means he has inserted himself above all laws of this country and for his children/cronies.

    2. @Bloviator Magnus The impeachment is over and there is no conspiracy stated. You’re reading what you want to see and not what’s there. Has Trumped talked about pardoning himself? It seems to me that the Democrats and their proxies are trying to goad him into these pardons to make him look bad.

  2. A pardon won’t protect Trump from New York’s new Attorney General Letitia James.
    And it won’t be a witch hunt.
    It will be a clown hunt.
    Letitia James WILL get her clown!

    1. @Stand Against Communism You mean like how Trump did not call out China for making their money less then the US?

    2. @Banana Phobic he’s not being sued by someone he owes an unpaid debt, meaning civil cases. However, fraud (in it’s many forms) and tax evasion are crimes. You can bet he will be convicted on at least one of those. #followthemoney

    3. @Stand Against Communism so, I’m going to recommend higher tensile foil for your hat and switching to decaf. One to dial down the crazy thinking and the other to dial down the crazy talking. Oh, and ask the Russian to take his hand out of your butt for a bit – you puppets really need a rest.

    1. @Bloviator Magnus The president is to see that the laws are faithfully executed, though he or she may grant reprieves and pardons except regarding Congressional impeachment of himself or other federal officers.
      Article 2

    2. @FrankThe law in this case is the US COnstitution and it contains no limit on the pardon power. what you think doesn’t matter. You have to cite a LEGAL limit and there isn’t one.

    1. @Robert Lee go look up John Brennan’s unredacted handwritten notes July 2016 on DuckDuckGo. Go look up untangling the lies of the Obama Biden coup meeting June 5th 2017. Go look up Rick Grennell Adam Schiff unredacted sworn testimony

    2. @Josephus S drump’s not stepping anywhere as long as he can continue to fleece his idiotic cult. And he will continue to squeal about fraud, because he knows he’s the one guilty of it.
      Try again.

  3. Effectively, a sitting president cannot be prosecuted. They can be prosecuted after they leave office, as long as the statute of limitations hasn’t expired. Self-pardoning is self-judging, so that should be illegal.

    1. @Genesis Omega Really? You can’t read the thread then. Who was I responding to? derp. BTW this argument is often raised relating to self-pardons so I guess you are just clueless.

    2. @Paufit No a pardon is not an admission of guilt. Nixon was pardoned and he was never even charged with anything. More liberal misinformation.

    3. @Bloviator Magnus nixon resigned so he was not charged.. then the ford pardon. If you are charged and convicted as with Joe Arpaio , a pardon is an admission of guilt..”It carries an imputation of guilt and acceptance of a confession of it” Burdick V. United States U.S. 79 (1915)

    4. @Bloviator Magnus-I asked a specific question. If you’re too slow to keep up then go troll elsewhere, dingbat.

  4. Our constitution has been challenged these last 4 years. Our forefathers “never imagined” that a criminal would ever be elected.

    1. @AwesomeBlackDude Because Mitch McConnell wants to sneak the liability issue onto the packet. He’s actually perpetrate blackmail ‘You either forget all about liability issue, or you won’t see the money for the people’.

    2. @jenlopez Will you please tell us what university did you graduate your political science major? You’re so knowledgeble and brought smart arguments and proof for all your statements.

  5. So has everything been for 4 years. This isn’t news, he’s a charlatan and crook. Cover his decent and it’s mechanisms.

  6. If the president can pardon himself, then the president can commit treason. Which is exactly what his sedition will amount to in the end, because we know he is a traitor!

    1. I never want to hear another real democratic argument from the left about President 46 is not neoliberalism. Joe Biden still has no intention of telling the media why Nancy Pelosi, Mitch McConnell, will not release the $1,200 U.S. stimulus check right away?

      And why is Neera Tanden not calling for the release of the United States’ stimulus checks?

      Notice how Msnbc broadcast is not mentioning anything about the American stimulus relief checks as of none. These reporters are some Shameful people. 😷

    2. @AwesomeBlackDude No if you want to blame anybody about a stimulus check right now when the Republicans they manage to rush through the supreme court justice but they cannot manage to get out the stimulus package so if you just sitting around waiting on that $1200 hundred dollars you might be waiting till January 20 or should I say sometime in February

    3. AwesomeBlackDude Mitch McConnell made it clear, that there is no point in pushing a bill the president will not sign. And, I am not one of the labels you are trying to brand people, so I am sorry child, but I am no bodies fool!

    1. He actually admits to all of his crimes and future crimes and he also does tell the truth sort of just when ever he says “ someone “ or “people say” all of the tales he has that’s the things he’s doing or about to do it so sad that he is so stupid and we still have more than a month of it to go.

    2. @Chiang Kai Shrek Even if Biden does Trump still has State cases pending which also include his three oldest children.

    3. @Harris Biden 2020 WON !!! You deserve way more likes! I agree with you 100% and you need to type this comment everywhere.👍🏽 Also Trump paod himself from the Cares Act PPE imagine how many more Republicans did the same but we can’t get assistance for individuals who are suffering.

    1. The governor of Georgia has called for a hand audit of the vote after the video EVIDENCE of voter fraud was shown yesterday. Biden’s biased liberal media coronation has been canceled. Trump WILL be re-elected in an electoral landslide.

  7. The framers of the constitution would NEVER been able to conceive of an individual so morally corrupt and devoid of personal honour as trump.

  8. Pardoning oneself is basically stating that he’s above the law which is a direct breach of America’s Constitution.

    1. @FJ hey DNCbot, that’s what I said “completely fractured” = broken.

    2. @Durk Dee where exactly does the constitution say this? Chapter and verse, so to speak, please and thank you.

    1. Actually, Nixon CHOSEnot to pardon himself because at that time, it was unclear of the legitimacy of self-pardons and he had a genuine concern that the pardon would be overturned. Trump has stacked the courts, the government and the Republican party with loyalist lapdogs who may well back his play. It’s a very different legal and political climate today then it was in Nixon’s time.
      Trump will absolutely pardon himself, and will 100% believe it’s legit to do so. The Supreme Court should overturn such a pardon because of the insanely dangerous precedent it sets whereby any future US Presidents can commit any criminal act without repercussion. Unfortunately, we’ve seen from the last month that Republican politicians have zero dignity or honuor and most of them probably think a guaranteed “get out of jail free’ card is an awesome idea. The only hope is that the judges on the Supreme Court have more honour and loyalty to the law and to US Democracy then they do to the sleeze-ball who got them their cushy job.

    2. @Starganderfish It is unseemly for POTUS to pardon himself, but it is legal. Trump doesn’t care about unseemly. He wallows in it.

    1. The letter of the law is not necessarily the same as the spirit of the law. Clearly, it would be absurd to allow the President to grant himself clemency for illegal acts.

  9. It has always been about himself. Seeking a pardon for that same guy, him, would be true to his loathsome form.

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