The Presidential Self-Pardon Controversy
The Presidential Self-Pardon Controversy
This chapter examines dueling legal arguments that the courts would confront in a self-pardon case, and some practical considerations that would arise. It does not conclude with any suggestions for reform, because no realistic ones exist. A self-pardon would only happen in an extreme situation, but such situations are no less imaginable for being extreme. Shortly before President Nixon resigned, his lawyer advised him that he could pardon himself, and Nixon considered doing it. More recently, the legal travails of Presidents Reagan, Bush, Clinton, and Bush have led some commentators, congressmen, and citizens to broach the subject. The political environment has never been quite right for a self-pardon, but the question never quite goes away, and political winds have a way of shifting quickly.
Keywords: dueling legal arguments, self-pardon case, legal travails, Reagan, Bush, Clinton
Yale Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs , and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.
