We are at a crossroads in America. Our country is in the throes of a rearrangement of historic proportions based on machinations by the Trump regime. Let’s examine the presidential pardon process. Basically, a pardon is the action of forgiving or being forgiven for an error or offense. Actually, it’s appropriate to seek to correct something that needs fixing.
Pardons work well for those people who are sorry for their actions. Pardons are not relevant among people who express regret with a hidden plan to continue their behavior. Those pardons are counterproductive and create additional chaos within the criminal justice system.
An example of an over-the-top pardon spree is the one that occurred on January 6, 2021. On that date, scores of Donald Trump supporters stormed the Capitol with the intent of overthrowing the government. Apparently, most of them believed that the election was “stolen” from Trump and they set out to remedy the situation.
On another note, there were also those individuals who merely wanted to act out—to demonstrate disdain for our present form of government. These negative actors were responsible for numerous injuries and a few actual deaths. They defecated in the hallways of Congress and beat up people. They actually erected a platform with plans to hang the vice president at that time, Mike Pence. They apparently had every intention of overthrowing the government. As it turns out, over 1,500 individuals were arrested and charged for those actions. Subsequent to that time, Donald J. Trump ascended to office and, at the very beginning of his new term, he pardoned many of them, some of whom had prior criminal records; they were already bad actors.
Fast forward to 2025. In addition to the over 1,500 who were pardoned by Donald Trump, some of these have committed new crimes. They apparently are more than incidental criminals; they have not learned their lessons. In actuality, they probably feel emboldened and believe that their loyalty to Trump will always protect them.
Truly, if one is inclined to conspiracy theories, it is not far-fetched to believe that Trump’s pardon strategy was part of an ulterior motive… to create his own private army! The logic? Those individuals have tended to demonstrate loyalty to Trump and he, in turn, has had their backs.
Pardons utilized in this manner are disingenuous, but that has not stopped Trump from (mis)using them. But his actions are causing some legislators to call into question the use of presidential pardons. This is no doubt due to the extreme utilization of them by the Trump regime.
The fact of the matter is that Trump, who has pardoned so many people, is using them for his own purposes. Proof of this assertion is one of the most recent dramas… Trump pardoned a Republican who switched parties once he was pardoned by Trump. He promptly decided to switch parties; Trump is losing his mind and is taking it personally that the individual has switched from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party. This sends a strong message that Trump’s pardon was intended to garner another ally for his own political arsenal.
Essentially, Trump’s pardons are evidently self-serving, especially if we consider how he expects loyalty from those he pardons. He is misusing pardons, which is one of the reasons why some politicos are seriously considering getting rid of presidential pardons.
In actuality, it seems counterproductive to throw out the baby with the bathwater by getting rid of all presidential pardons. Trump’s mismanagement should not cause everyone else to suffer. The better strategy would be that of creating modifications to the current process; i.e., there could be limitations on the number of pardons that a president can give, or to enact other strategies to keep from weaponizing the pardons process.
In the meantime, we must understand what Trump is doing. He is disingenuous and seeks to use his pardons as political weapons. In addition to a private army, pardons are another rung in his political arsenal. Keep that in mind. Aluta continua.
(Reprinted from the Chicago Crusader.)
