Don’t Pardon Trump’s Pardons

The power of the presidential pardon is a holdover from America’s colonial roots. But no one had used it like former President Trump. Over and over he kept pardoning his allies, and then, he’d welcome them back into the fold. . It seemed like he was rewarding these criminals for their loyalty, and belittling whole categories of crime, like fraud, campaign finance violations, and corruption. Is that what was really happening? This week in our series called The Law According to Trump, we go deeper into Trump’s use of the pardon with Ciara Torres-Spelliscy. Torres-Spelliscy is a professor of law at Stetson University and the author of Corporate Citizen?: An Argument for the Separation of Corporation and State and Political Brands. Torres-Spelliscy speaks with host Andrea Bernstein about how Trump’s pardoning has hurt democracy, and what it means for the future of the country. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock the full season of The Law According to Trump—you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from The Law According to Trump show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/thelawplus to get access wherever you listen.