Trump's Pardons and Communications
On Tuesday, February 19, Donald Trump announced a host of pardons and communication against a former Illinois governor, Rod Blagojevich. He was charged and jailed for eight years due to his corruption to the former police commissioner, Bernie Kerik. In front of the jury, Tuesday, trump took many legal actions including the pardons of Kerik, Michael Milken, and Edward DeBartolo Jr. which had happened a couple of days before the federal court sentencing of Roger Stone for corruption. It is assumed that trump might pardon his former adviser aswell. Stones sentences have drawn the attention of trump leaving him to comment by calling this event “A miscarriage of justice”. Trump had told reporters from Fox News that he had not given any thought towards pardoning Stone’s case. Due to trumps mercy in pardoning certain allies, many people in these kinds of situations have requested pardons from the white house. Read this article for more information.
1. Do you think Trump should have not pardoned all these cases?
2. If Trump does not pardon Roger Stone, what would you think a good next step would be?
3. Do you think that pardons should exist?
4. Have you even got away with something that deserved a bigger punishment and how did it make you feel?
No, Trump should not have pardoned these individuals because they were found guilty of committing a crime and they should have to serve there time. For example, there are other people who have committed similar or less severe crimes and they have not been pardoned from these crimes, so everyone should just have to serve there time.
ReplyDeleteAs of today, Donald Trump has not pardoned Roger Stone for corruption. I do not think Roger Stone should be pardoned for the crime because previously stated I believe that everyone should have consequence for their actions. In addition, Im confused about this question because I don't think Donald Trump pardoned Roger Stone.
I do think pardons should exist. However, pardons should only be given to individuals who have been falsely accused of doing a crime. No pardons should be used to excuse people from crimes they really did commit and if your commit a crime your should do the time.
No, I have not done something that has deserved a bigger punishment because my parents always over react to thing that I get in trouble. So I have never experienced being under punished when doing something I shouldn't have.
1. I agree with Thomas that President Trump should not have pardoned these individuals because the White House did not go through the normal process that is usually carried out to investigate pardons. It is certainly possible that many of these people should have been pardoned, and Rod Blagojevich had already served 8 years in prison and a court had overturned 4 of his 18 counts which he was convicted on. These people may have deserved a pardon, but the White House should have used a more thorough process to decide whether to grant one or not.
ReplyDelete2. Like Thomas, the wording of this question confuses me because Trump has not pardoned Roger Stone yet. I do not think he should be pardoned, because it is clear that he has committed some offenses and the President has a direct stake in his case. However, Stone's trial has been unfair and he should receive a new trial.
3. Yes, pardons should exist because they allow the president to free people who did not commit the crime. Additionally, pardons can be used for the good of the country to preserve stability. For example, Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon because if Nixon was put in trial it would cause a public uproar, so it was a better decision for the country to have Nixon pardoned.
4. I usually am able to negotiate with my parents so my punishment is less and while it does feel slightly immoral, I am always happy that I escaped the confines of a strict punishment.
1, Absolutely not. Trump should never have pardoned these cases. No one is above the laws even the president and friends or people that he likes. A man that Trump pardoned, Blagojevich was blatantly guilty of his very serious crimes and yet Trump still pardoned him. An act like this is completely unacceptable from the president of the United States.
ReplyDelete2, Thomas is correct. As of now, Roger Stone has not been pardoned. If I was Trump I would not pardon Roger Stone as it would just turn the ENTIRE media against him. Former supporters would say that he was a greedy man just using his power to help his rich billionaire buddies. This may also cause another impeachment on abuse of power and the conflict would just erupt from there.
3, I agree with Thomas, pardons should exist. Sometimes people are wrongly convicted and sometimes they do deserve to get pardoned. But when a president tries to pardon someone for his favor or as a quid pro quo, it raises eyebrows as well as questions.
Many times when people are wrongly convicted is regarding forensics and fingerprint ID scans. Many times the FBI gets the wrong person through ID scan or they found more information. An example of this was during the 2004 Madrid train bombings when the FBI or CIA wrongfully convicted an Oregon man and caused a lot of chaos and harm to his family. So in conclusion, I think pardons should exist but shouldn't be used for personal interests.
4, Yes, I felt guilty after. Because I knew that I should've deserved a bigger punishment but I didn't want to get a bigger punishment because it wouldn't be good for me. The larger the scale of the crime the greater and longer the guilt hangs over your head. The feeling is very similar to the feeling when you do something wrong and someone else accuses you of it and you deny it and they trust you. It's a very guilty feeling.
1. Yes I agree with Thomas, Trump should not have pardoned these people because they did commit these crimes. Their crimes have affected hundreds of people so believe they should finish their sentence. I believe that Trump instead of fooling around and pardoning actual criminals he should try to look for people who were wrongfully convicted and pardon them.
ReplyDelete2. I agree with Bradford, the wording is slightly confusing but Stone should not be pardoned because he did commit a crime but I also agree that he should be given a new trial.
3. Yes I believe pardons should exist but the President shouldn't be able to pardon whoever he'd like. I think he should use his power to pardon to pardon wrongfully convicted people.
4.Yes I have gotten away with things I should've gotten into bigger trouble for but I did feel guilty afterward.
1) Trump should not have pardoned all the cases. The different individuals were all found guilty, and there was no reason Trump should have ended their sentences early. I agree with Leo that it makes our country look terrible when our president is pardoning whomever he likes just because he is close with them. I think Trump should look to pardon people who were wrongfully convicted instead of just his friends.
ReplyDelete2) As Governor J.B. Pritzker said, “President Trump has abused his pardon power in inexplicable ways to reward his friends and condone corruption.” If he pardons Roger Stone, it will only be another example of Trump misusing his presidential power to help out his friends. Stone was found guilty of some offences, and they should not be overlooked just because Trump wants to get Stone out of jail.
3) I don’t think pardons should exist. I think the president should have to stick with the original decision of the trial because otherwise, the president could take whomever he liked out of jail. If the trial was unfair, then there should be a system to redo the trial, but the president should not have the power to pardon individuals.
4) With my parents, usually I get a big punishment no matter what I do. So if my punishment is smaller than it should be, I would be very happy.
1. I agree with Thomas that Trump should not have pardoned all the cases. Those people were guilty and there is no reason why their sentences should be ended early. The concept of Trump using his power to shorten the sentences of whomever he wants is one that I find corrupt. Rod Blagojevich had already served four years and overturned 4 of his 18 counts which he was convicted on. To agree with Bradford, some of these pardonings may have been reasonable, but they should have to go through the same process as everyone else.
ReplyDelete2. Trump has not yet pardoned Roger Stone, but if he does, he will face a lot of hate. Pardoning Roger Stone would be a clear sign of Trump misusing his pardoning power to help his friends. I do not think this is a good idea for Trump in any way.
3. To disagree with Maddie, I do think pardons should exist. People are sometimes wrongfully convicted and they deserve to be pardoned. Currently, Trump is abusing his pardoning power to benefit whomever he would like. This makes it challenging to advocate for pardons, but if pardons are used correctly I think they should exist.
4. My parents tend to overreact, so I get a big punishments when I do something bad. Sometimes I can negotiate my way out of my punishment, and in the rare instance it works, I am very pleased. I do not feel guilty because they decided to make.
1. No, I do not think Trump should have pardoned these people. I agree with Thomas that people who have committed a crime can't just be excused for it because of connections they have with the President. There are many people who are in jail for unjust reasons, yet the President has only pardoned people that have connections to him, and didn't got through official investigations to see if they were really not guilty. He excused the law for personal reasons which should not happen.
ReplyDelete2. I don't think Roger Stone should be pardoned just because of his connections to the President. If someone is guilty of a crime, than it is fair that they must serve the penalty of the crime.
3. I think that pardons should exist. There are many people that are put in jail unfairly and should be pardoned. Along with this, the punishment may not match up equally to the severity of the crime. Pardons can be used for good, but in this case, it was not.
4. Yes, I have gotten away with things that probably deserved a bigger punishment. It does feel good to know you got away with something, but I always end up feeling guilty at the end.
1. They should not have been pardoned by Trump, because they were indeed guilty of their crime. They were fairly evaluated and, in the end, came up guilty; this should have been enough reason for trump to not pardon them.
ReplyDelete2. Roger Stone hasn’t and should not be pardoned because he was guilty of what he did. It should be clear that if found guilty there is no reason to pardon. If one who is guilty, gets pardoned by the president, that is a clear example of favoritism and that won’t go well against Trump, or; in this case Roger Stone. As Bradford said, if at all, Stone should be given a second trial in which he could be evaluated. There is a large chance he will still be guilty of corruption, but this step just clears up any misinterpretations.
3. Pardons should exist because in some cases, they may need to be used to determine the actual truth. As Bradford stated, if one was wrongly convicted, they should get pardoned because the previous decision was not fairly evaluated. It all comes down to how far off the previous conviction was and if what actually happened was not a crime as well.
4. I have gotten away with a small punishment though I have committed a large “crime” for it. I don’t feel comfortable saying for what, but it has always stuck with me for a long time. I always felt like confessing but I just couldn’t, and for some time I walked with large weights on my shoulders. Eventually the event was well in the past for me to stop being guilty.
1) Trump should not have pardoned these cases. He is helping powerful people use their resources for selfish reasons. Whereas, people who don’t have the power that wealthy and influential individuals have, will be prosecuted and might not have a chance to defend themselves. If he is letting crimes of corruption be unpunished, then others in the government might find that they can get away with the same behavior, knowing that Trump will protect them.
ReplyDelete2) As Thomas said previously, Roger Stone has not been pardoned just yet. In the first paragraph, I addressed the fact that Trump shouldn’t be pardoning any of these cases. Roger Stone should be facing the consequences for the crimes he has committed. Trump is just protecting him because Stone supports him, he’s using a selfish bias to get more power for himself.
3) I think that there still should be pardons. People who don’t have the power to defend themselves will receive harsh treatment that they can’t get away from. Individuals shouldn’t be incriminated for crimes they didn’t commit or couldn't help. For example, mental illness might drive someone to break some law and then once in jail, they won’t get the treatment they need. Surely we should be able to pardon people for laws that aren’t just (racism, the discrimination of the LGBTQ+ community, etc). Maybe someone was poor and couldn’t get a good lawyer that would defend them fairly; receiving a harsh punishment that they wouldn’t be able to get out of. Pardons should be protecting the people who are powerless, not the ones that are powerful.
4) My parents have always been very firm with their opinions. In most instances when I’ve done something wrong, they punish me fairly and I know that they had the right to do so. They definitely overreact and so sometimes I do believe that they have punished me unfairly.
1. Do you think Trump should have not pardoned all these cases?
ReplyDeleteTrump should not have pardoned these cases. He's protecting an official even though he is guilty which is violating the constitution. The whole point of our government are checks and balances and if Trump can pardon any and all criminals where does it stop? Where are the balances? This is a corrupt and abuse of his power that can have increasingly more dangerous outcomes.
2. If Trump does not pardon Roger Stone, what would you think a good next step would be?
Roger Stone should be imprisoned for the crimes that he committed and if he is not then the next step is could be anything. Any republican can be freed or pardoned for any and all crimes committed. If Stones is freed where is the line drawn who stops Trump from pardoning every imprisoned republican. It never stops.
3. Do you think that pardons should exist?
I think that for someone to be pardoned it should be passed like a bill with multiple branches and steps that force all party's involved to look at the facts and make an faire and honorable decision. Pardons exist to help people but due to corruption and greed it has become a system of powerful people freeing there supporters and friends turning the government into high school clicks.
4. Have you even got away with something that deserved a bigger punishment and how did it make you feel?
My parents punish accordingly but they also understand that nothing is black and white. Like most things there are always different tellings of the same story and people must take both into consideration because neither are both entirely right nor wrong.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWhile Trump had the legal right to pardon the cases he should not have. Trump’s corruption, manipulation, and exploits of the legal system must stop. In past administrations, no one was concerned about the pardon system. This is because, in past years, the President’s party has had influence over his decisions including pardons. This kept government officials confident that if a true blatant criminal was pardoned The President’s party could stop it by convincing the president otherwise. Sadly in today’s Whitehouse, Trump has managed to turn the Republican party into his pawns and the voices of reason who would have stood up to this decision in past years would be threatened and silenced for making their voices heard. While Trump had legal rights to pardon the cases this system was built for a united party that worked together to accomplish their goals, not the accumulation of power in the government today.
ReplyDeleteAs Thomas said, Trump has not yet pardoned Rodger Stone. In fact, he actually said that he would hold off from doing so, at least temporarily (CNN). I believe that he should not be pardoned and I disagree with Trump if he does get pardoned as he is a great example of a blatant criminal.
I believe that the President should not have a full pardon system but rather something similar. The President should have the power to revisit a closed case if he or she believes that someone has been falsely accused. A retrial should take place, however. This allows the president to help those falsely accused while avoiding having real criminals released. Trump should revisit the cases if he so strongly believes that the sentences were not fair. If he is smart enough to be correct than great minds think alike, and if the president has such a great mind others should agree.
I cannot remember any specific instances when this has happened but I am sure that it has at some point. Most people have probably experienced being underpunished at some point in their life. In life, under-punishing someone isn’t ideal but it is better than getting no discipline at all.
1.) Trump should not pardon these people because they have gone to court and have been ruled guilty by their peers. There is also not an obvious reason for these cases to be overturned or pardoned. Using this reasoning, Trump is being irrational with his power as the president of our country. Trump's actions are making him look more and more bias to most of the public eye.
ReplyDelete2.) I believe that Roger Stone having gone to court and being found guilty by a jury of his fellow peers should serve his sentence. He has obviously violated the law and should have to be held responsible and take the consequences. If Trump continues to pardon people it will encourage breaking the law.
3.) I think that pardons should exist as vetos do. I think pardons should be able to be overturned. I do not think that one person should have the power to erase the charges
held and proven against them.
4.) If I did get a smaller punishment than I should have I would feel relieved.
1.) Trump had every moral right to pardon everyone but Blagojevich, a corrupt man. I strongly disagree with David's point that Trump is the one who tries to corrupt the legal system. No media outlet batted an eye when Obama commuted the sentences of about 1700 people while he was in office and that includes the sentence of Chelsea Manning who leaked classified information. Obama reduced her sentence from 35 to 7 years all in a big PR charade. However, when Trump commutes a sentence for tax evasion that is longer than most sentences for negligent homicide and manslaughter suddenly he is the face of government corruption. Furthermore, most didn't care when the Democratic Party blew through taxpayers dollars so that they and a prosecutor named Muellar could write a 448 page report about Trump not colluding with Russia at all. Not so long ago Pelosi and the Democrats underwent the most split-party impeachment that this country has ever seen on, (pun certainly intended) trumped up charges. The only Republican that ever voted to impeach was Mitt Romney who has consistently shown that one's-morals get drowned out with enough ambition, power and money. Not to mention the Democrats trying to, illegally, by threat and coercion of force, strip people's natural right to defend themselves, in which they blatantly don't acknowledge that guns prevent 500k-3 million deaths per year in the US alone (CDC),(FBI). All in all, anyone who says Trump is corrupt, is either failing to see the Democratic party's leadership blatant and consistent disloyalty to the Republic, or choosing to ignore it.
ReplyDelete2.) I do not believe Roger Stone should get pardoned but definitely deserves a retrial just as Bradford says. If you are going to convict a corrupt man, do it right the first time, lest he roams free again. I'm sure he's got plenty of friends in high places waiting for the slightest flaw in his prosecution.
3.) I believe pardons are essential for what it means to be president. However, outstanding abuses of pardons and commutations, such as Obama's, should not go without scrutiny. Nevertheless, we should trust the judgement of the Commander-in Chief, as the lyrics go,"Yours is the aim to make this grand country grander, tis' you will do is our strong firm BELIEF."
4.) If I do something wrong, I typically don't get punished and more like chewed out. I do occasionally feel that I can get yelled at more than necessary for a relatively minor mistake, I also have gotten yelled at less than I thought I would and should and I occasionally feel guilty about it.
1. I do not think Trump should have pardoned all of these cases. Although in many cases when a case is pardoned it is usually deserved, in a few of these instances the cases should not have been pardoned. Seeing as there was no specific reasoning for these cases to be pardoned the men should serve their punishments.
ReplyDelete2. As Thomas stated Stone has not yet been pardoned for his crime. Although he is closely associated with President Trump that is no reason for him to be pardoned. Anyone should receive consequences for their actions, Roger Stone included.
3. I do believe that pardoning should exist as long as it does not become a corrupt system. Because people are wrongly convicted of crimes consistently the concept of pardoning is important. However, when the system is abused as it has been recently by Trump is when Pardons become an issue.
4. I have gotten away with something which I deserved greater punishment for. These times have stuck with me because even though I have been glad not to receive a significant punishment I have still felt morally wrong for getting off easy.