Rudy saying Trump can pardon himself......No Rudy, no he can't.

[sunonmars]

Link to tweet

"He's not, but he probably does," Rudy Giuliani tells Stephanopoulos. "He has no intention of pardoning himself, but that doesn't say he can't." https://abcn.ws/2HeBm8D
........................

Rudy hanging himself and Trump in the second one

Link to tweet

Asked about shifting explanations for statement on Trump Tower meeting, Rudy Giuliani tells Stephanopoulos:

"This is the reason you don't let the president testify. Our recollection keeps changing, or we're not even asked a question and somebody makes an assumption."

[appleannie1943]

1. You have to admit guilt in order to be pardoned.

[TEB]

2. Exactly

[onenote]

7. No, you don't have to admit guilt to be pardoned.

While the Justice Department standards for assessing requests for clemency indicate that expressions of remorse (which effectively are admissions of guilt) strengthens one's chances of having their request granted, they also acknowledge that there is no requirement of an admission of guilt. And, indeed, one of the purposes of pardons is to provide relief to an unjustly convicted individual. The law providing for compensation of unjustly convicted persons also acknowledges that pardons may be granted on the "stated ground of innocence and unjust conviction."

The Constitution places one, and only one, limitation/condition on the Presidential pardon power -- it may not be used with respect to someone who is being or has been impeached to relieve them of the consequences of impeachment.

To the extent the pardon power is used in a way that Congress believes is abusive, the answer is for Congress to impeach and remove the President. But doing so will not reverse the effectiveness of the pardon.

[Blue_Adept]

3. "How has Rudy fallen so low?"

Easy, he was always there.

[Betty88]

4. +1

[rock]

5. I've said it before, I'll say it again

In the American system of Justice, you cannot stand in judgement of yourself. Therefore, you cannot pardon yourself.

[OldHippieChick]

6. You don't let the President testify because his "recollection keeps changing"????

WTF? Then why ever let anyone testify? Or is this an affliction that only Presidents suffer? How totally insane!! Does he even hear himself?

[sunonmars]

8. Translation - he keeps lying and cant keep the story straight.

If Trump was a ordinary pleb like the rest of us, he would be jailed in minutes because he cannot stop lying and keeps incriminating everybody else, he'd be whacked if he was in the italian mob.

[former9thward]

14. If you are a lawyer you DON'T let anyone testify to a prosecutor for exactly this reason.

Or at least give them that advice. I always tell clients -- do not talk to the police, prosecutors or anyone else about the case. Any cop will tell you that people convict themselves because they can't shut up.

[OldHippieChick]

15. But it's not because their "recollection keeps changing". I would guess you make sure your

clients get their recollections in writing so they can refer to that writing and be certain they don't change their "recollection". And yes, words can be twisted and misinterpreted. Clients/suspects should always have legal advice prior to any questioning. I assume you are not talking about innocent witnesses.

Not every client is going to go off the rails and have verbal diarrhea each time they are questioned, but then not all of them are demented narcissists.

[former9thward]

16. Why do you think we have had so many innocent people freed because of DNA?

Most of them plead guilty or wrote confessions which were used against them at trial. Prosecutors and the police are trained to get confessions and many don't care if the person is innocent or not. Their view is "They are guilty of something even if it is not this crime". That is not my philosophy.

[OldHippieChick]

17. Perhaps you need to re-read my response.

I was agreeing with you.

[syringis]

9. He CAN'T pardon himself for one very good reason

No one can be a judge and jury.

It is a universal principle of law.

Principles of law prevail over laws.

Giuliani is as catastrophic as the rest of the team lawyers !

[former9thward]

11. The pardon power does mean a President can be a judge and jury.

That is one reason it was put in the Constitution and was made absolute. No one can overturn a presidential pardon. The founders knew the judicial system can go off the rails sometimes and they wanted to put a provision in the Constitution to remedy that. Federalist #74 by Alexander Hamilton reflects the views of the founders on the pardon power if anyone is interested in reading.

[tritsofme]

10. The answer is much more complex answer than "no he can't"

It is unsettled, though a plain reading of the pardon power would suggest he very well may have the ability to pardon himself, and that it would be the responsibility of Congress to impeach based on such an abuse of power.

[syringis]

12. Hi Tritofme

I am absolutely categorical : Trump can't pardon himself.

See my reply above.

Even better, in theory, he can't even pardon someone else, in a case where he might be involved.

[tritsofme]

13. The Constitution doesn't say that.

shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment

As I said, whether courts attempt to read the restrictions you mention into that provision, is quite unsettled.

[Gothmog]

18. No, Trump can't pardon himself. The Constitution tells us so.

From Prof. Tribe and others https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/no-trump-cant-pardon-himself-the-constitution-tells-us-so/2017/07/21/f3445d74-6e49-11e7-b9e2-2056e768a7e5_story.html?utm_term=.a066d8b411f4

Can a president pardon himself? Four days before Richard Nixon resigned, his own Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel opined no, citing “the fundamental rule that no one may be a judge in his own case.” We agree.

The Justice Department was right that guidance could be found in the enduring principles that no one can be both the judge and the defendant in the same matter, and that no one is above the law.

The Constitution specifically bars the president from using the pardon power to prevent his own impeachment and removal. It adds that any official removed through impeachment remains fully subject to criminal prosecution. That provision would make no sense if the president could pardon himself.

The pardon provision of the Constitution is there to enable the president to act essentially in the role of a judge of another person’s criminal case, and to intervene on behalf of the defendant when the president determines that would be equitable. For example, the president might believe the courts made the wrong decision about someone’s guilt or about sentencing; President Barack Obama felt this way about excessive sentences for low-level drug offenses. Or the president might be impressed by the defendant’s subsequent conduct and, using powers far exceeding those of a parole board, might issue a pardon or commutation of sentence.....

President Trump thinks he can do a lot of things just because he is president. He says that the president can act as if he has no conflicts of interest. He says that he can fire the FBI director for any reason he wants (and he admitted to the most outrageous of reasons in interviews and in discussion with the Russian ambassador). In one sense, Trump is right — he can do all of these things, although there will be legal repercussions if he does. Using official powers for corrupt purposes — such as impeding or obstructing an investigation — can constitute a crime.

But there is one thing we know that Trump cannot do — without being a first in all of human history. He cannot pardon himself.