Should Donald Trump pardon Hillary Clinton? It’s not a bad idea. Think about it.
A Pardon Would Be an Admission of Guilt
If Donald Trump issued a pardon for Hillary Clinton, whether or not to accept it would be up to Hillary Clinton. She could decline it and allow the several investigations into her misconduct reach a conclusion; knowing that the conclusion might involve a grand jury or special prosecutor. Or, she could accept the pardon. Accepting a pardon would in effect be an admission of guilt on Hillary’s part.
After all, innocent people aren’t offered pardons. The only people that get pardons are those involved in wrong-doing. Were Hillary to receive and accept a pardon, her guilt would once and for all be solidified within her legacy the same way Richard Nixon’s accomplishments will forever be overshadowed by his political demise.
Next Best Things to A Conviction
A pardon would be the next best thing to a conviction. True, it would remove any possibility of Hillary Clinton serving a jail sentence, probation, or enduring any other form of sanction. With her guilt undeniable for all but the most apologetic Clinton apologists, Democrats would have no real defense left for her misdeeds.
Democrats would actually have to admit that yes, Hillary Clinton wasn’t the sainted grandmother their narrative pretends she is. Because again, innocent people aren’t offered pardons.
An Olive Branch?
Some have suggested that Trump could pardon Hillary Clinton as part of some attempt to bridge the ideological chasm that separates right and left. That’s an insult to olive branches everywhere. For anyone that believes the left wouldn’t throw a pardon on the bonfire their rent-a-mobs are burning in whatever city they are rioting in at the moment, there’s a Nigerian prince that has some nice oceanfront property in Arizona to hand over to the first person that emails their full name and social security number to him.
The reaction of the left to a pardon could be particularly instructive. Most progressives no longer live in reality, that much is evident. How they’d take a Donald Trump pardon and pretzel-twist it into something racist, sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic, repressive, intolerant, or whatever else, would be hilarious to observe.
Anyway, why does Trump have to bridge ideological divides? He’s a better man that Barack Obama so this isn’t to suggest that he should govern in the divisive, exclusionary manner Obama used. All the same, elections do have consequences and since 2010 Democrats have lost hundreds of elected positions at the federal, state, and municipal level. Seems then the onus should be on the jack ass party to find some sense of humility and ask Donald Trump, “Mr. President, what can we do to improve our working relationship with you?”
What About a Conditional Pardon?
In theory, Trump could negotiate a pardon arrangement with the Clinton team. What would the Trump administration seek from Hillary Clinton in exchange for or as part of a pardon deal? That’s a difficult question to answer. Almost certainly, it would have to be something connected to her private server, Benghazi, or the Clinton Foundation.
Could the pardon agreement be constructed in such a way as to limit undue Clinton Foundation influence in political events at home and abroad? Could the pardon be made dependent upon removal of executive privilege from the handful of emails that were exempted from investigations into her private server? Or could we finally see the paper trail at the State Department consisting of more than 600 requests made by US Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens for improved security at his post — all of which were rejected by Hillary Clinton’s State Department. Maybe a blanket ban on Hillary or Bill being involved in any future political campaigns?
The Obama’s Wouldn’t Mind a Pardon
Really, the only people that would truly stand to benefit from a Hillary Clinton pardon would be Barack and Michelle Obama. Absent a concession of some sort from Hillary, President Trump wouldn’t benefit from issuing a pardon. Aside from avoiding prosecution, Hillary Clinton’s legacy would forever be trashed by a pardon.
Chelsea Clinton is being groomed for Congress – reports suggest the Webb Hubbell lookalike who once tried to care about money but couldn’t bring herself to do so may take Rep Nita Lowey’s seat in the House. Lowey’s district includes Chappaqua so Chelsea a) would be able to more plausibly pass herself off as a yokel than her mom and dad did when they moved to New York sixteen or so years ago and b) New York’s 17th District is reliably blue (the last Republican to hold the 17th was Rep Guy Molinari who held it from January 1981 to 1983. Winning a seat in the House is one thing. A bid for Senate or the White House in 2020 would be a very different thing and in keeping with Clinton family tradition, Chelsea already has political baggage to contend with.
As hopeful as many on the left are that Chelsea may carry Hillary’s torch through glass ceilings real and imagined, the Clinton brand lost a lot of its worth on election night 2016. The Obama’s didn’t. Barack Obama’s current round of legacy polishing is designed to entrench his influence within Democratic circles. After all, who else do Democrats honestly have to carry themselves forward? Bernie Sanders plans to run again in 2020 but let’s face it, the guy isn’t getting any younger. Elizabeth Warren is often held up as the Democratic Party’s future. She’ll be 71 in 2020 and the skeletons in her closet are ripe for the picking.
By contrast, Michelle Obama will be 56 in 2020. With her husband’s community organizing working in the background and the idea of owning “the first female President” title fresh on Democrats minds, a Hillary pardon might be useful for a Michelle Obama Presidential bid. No doubt the Obamas would enjoy the revenge of holding up their husband-wife Presidencies for their rivals the Clintons to have to deal with for the remainder of their natural lives.
And That Would Be Perfect
Michelle Obama running against Donald Trump in 2020 would be perfect. After four years of success directly attributable to the Trump agenda, only the hard left fringe would vote for an Obama third term.
photo credit: thekrisharris DSC05080 via photopin (license)
