6/4/2018

DEMS/JUSTICE DEPARTMENT/PARDONS/ROBERT MUELLER/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “As President Donald Trump claims an ‘absolute right’ to pardon himself, top Democratic lawmakers are countering with their own message: ‘You are not a king.’ ‘The restoration of King George lll without his splendid education,morals,or grace,’ Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), a member of the House Judiciary Committee, tweeted, linking to Trump’s post claiming unfettered power to pardon himself for any potential crimes. Cohen’s rejoinder followed a similar comparison by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee. Nader noted that no president had ever tried to pardon himself and that the framers of the Constitution believed such a notion was ‘inherently corrupt.’ The sharp escalation of rhetoric followed Trump’s assertion of nearly unfettered authority to direct the Department of Justice to launch and drop investigations and his legal team’s claims that he can neither be indicted nor subpoenaed while in office. Though Democrats have little power on Capitol Hill, the comments from three members of the Judiciary Committee are notable, in part because the panel is the gatekeeper for potential impeachment proceedings — and Democrats are hopeful that a favorable political environment will send them surging into the majority in 2019. Nadler and other Democratic leaders have so far taken a cautious approach toward questions about impeachment, despite a partisan base that may demand it.”

-Kyle Cheney, Louis Nelson and Cristiano Lima, “Democrats warn Trump on pardon powers: ‘You are not a king’,” Politico, June 4, 2018 3:20 pm