...
By Jeff Charles
host of "A Fresh Perspective" podcast; contributor for RedState
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Former President Donald Trump is facing the historic circumstance of campaigning for a presidential election while under a Justice Department indictment. It has many on the Right calling foul, seeing it as evidence of a politicized justice system that's trying to win the presidential election for President Joe Biden by imprisoning his opponent.
Whether or not you agree with this sentiment, many of your fellow Americans do. And there's an easy way to diffuse this allegation: President Biden could immediately and preemptively pardon former President Trump. He should absolutely do this, as soon as possible.
Recent polling suggests that a significant chunk of Americans concur. A Harvard-Harris survey found that 53 percent of Americans would support a presidential pardon for Trump. Even more unexpected is that nearly a third of Democratic voters favored a pardon as well.
Read More
DeSantis Takes Attacks on Democratically-Elected Prosecutors to New, Dangerous Heights | Opinion4 min read
Chris Christie Booed, Then Cheered as He Rips Trump at Conservative Event3 min read
Merrick Garland Reacts to Whistleblower Claims About Hunter Biden Probe3 min read
...
By pardoning Donald Trump, President Biden would demonstrate a commitment to moving forward and fostering national healing. Avoiding a highly divisive trial would allow the country to shift its focus away from the controversies surrounding the former president and toward addressing pressing issues. Consider how a long, drawn out jury trial of Donald Trump would likely be highly divisive, potentially further polarizing the nation. Pardoning him could help alleviate these divisions, allowing the country to begin the process of moving forward and focusing on important policy matters.
When President Richard Nixon resigned in disgrace over the Watergate matter, his successor, President Gerald Ford, issued a pardon for this exact purpose: To move the nation forward. Ford did take a hit in the polls, which might be a factor that would discourage Biden from following suit. But such a move would likely not impact him in the same way, and it may even strengthen his candidacy for 2024.
Of course, there could be some potential pitfalls with pardoning Trump. Pardoning Trump without holding him accountable for his alleged misconduct could be seen as a failure to uphold the principle that no one is above the law. Critics argue that such a pardon would send a message that powerful individuals can evade consequences for their actions. Others have argued that granting a pardon to Trump would establish a precedent that future presidents or public officials could exploit to escape accountability for potential wrongdoing, which could further diminish public trust in the justice system and weaken the checks and balances crucial for a functioning democracy.
Yet despite the risks involved in Biden pardoning Trump, the potential benefits outweigh potential issues. The polarization of our country poses one of the most serious threats we've faced in a long, long time. And anything that has a chance of providing a healing salve to that deep wound is worth pursuing.
President Biden ran on being a uniter. Now is the time to put his money where his mouth is and pardon Trump so we can have a fair election, so every American can go to the polls and choose the right candidate for them.
And whatever else it achieves, pardoning Trump would eliminate the perception that President Biden is acting in a politically-motivated manner to influence the outcome of the election. After all, don't we all want the best man to win? Isn't that what's in the best interests of the nation?
A pardon would also serve another crucial function: It would keep this current legal drama from growing into a situation in which the next Republican president launches politically-motivated investigations and prosecutions against Democrats just as a tit for tat exercise.
Pardoning Trump might not be the most comfortable development and could cause other issues. But overall, it's the best of a series of bad options for our nation going forward.
President Biden: Pardon your rival. Pardon Trump.
Jeff Charles is the host of "A Fresh Perspective" podcast and a contributor for RedState.
The views in this article are the writer's own.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines