Predicting a historic presidential move, based solely on a retweet: really Alisyn?
On CNN’s New Day on Thursday morning, co-host Alisyn Camerota, referencing President Trump’s retweet of Rep. Matt Gaetz’s tweet suggesting that the president pardon himself, said:
“It seems clear this is going to happen.”
“Clear?” Camerota offered no evidence beyond the retweet in support of her bold assertion.
New York Times reporter and CNN analyst Astead Herndon concurred with Camerota’s conjecture. “We also know that this is a president that has not made any deference, and at every turn flouted kind the kind of presidential norms around pardons, and just basically around the office in general.”
He described the president as “Trump unchained”—someone who will not hesitate to “flout” any norms.
Finally, CNN legal analyst Elie Honig, added “it will be very legally debatable whether it’s even constitutionally valid to pardon yourself. I think the stronger argument, actually, is that that would be invalid. But if anyone’s ever going to try it, this is the president.”
It seems that CNN, based on the flimsiest of evidence, wants to get a headstart on attacking a potential presidential self-pardon. Imagine the liberal-media firestorm should President Trump actually make Camerota’s conjecture come true!
CNN’s prediction that President Trump will seek to pardon himself was sponsored in part by Shark Vacuums.
Here’s the transcript.
CNN
New Day
11/26/20
7:21 am ETALISYN CAMEROTA: He re-tweeted a suggestion from Congressman Matt Gaetz last night that he pardon himself. It seems clear this is going to happen.
. . .
ASTEAD HERNDON: We also know that this is a president that has not made any deference, and at every turn flouted kind the kind of presidential norms around pardons, and just basically around the office in general.
So I don’t think that that’s something that’s going to sway him: the idea that that is not something that presidents have done before, and that is not something that has usually been seen as their role. But we are in a stage now where, as a kind of a, you know, Trump Unchained in this last couple months.
ELIE HONIG: You theoretically can issue a blanket pardon, but only looking backwards. In other words, you cannot say, this person, or I, am pardoned for anything I might do in the future. But the president could try to issue himself a pardon saying, I’m covered for anything I’ve ever done up until this moment.
If he does that, it will be a historic moment, in the bad sense. It will be a permanent mark on his history. And it will be very legally debatable whether it’s even constitutionally valid to pardon yourself. I think the stronger argument, actually, is that that would be invalid. But if anyone’s ever going to try it, this is the president.
