Can the President Pardon Himself?

We the People

National Constitution Center

News, News Commentary, History

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 17 December 2020

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution says the president “shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.” This episode explores presidential pardons past and present—from Thomas Jefferson’s pardons of people convicted under the Sedition Act, through President Carter pardoning Richard Nixon and George H.W. Bush pardoning those involved in the Iran-Contra scandal, to President Trump’s exercise of the pardon power today. Experts Brian Kalt of Michigan State Law School and Saikrishna Prakash of the University of Virginia Law School answer questions including: Can the president pardon himself? What does the history say? What are the limits of the pardon power? Does someone admit guilt when they accept a pardon? How might the Supreme Court rule on pardons? And more, in conversation with host Jeffrey Rosen. Additional resources and a transcript are available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-library. Questions or comments about the podcast? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, and welcome
0:07.6	to We The People, a weekly show of constitutional debate.
0:11.2	The National Constitution Center is a nonpartisan nonprofit chartered by Congress to increase
0:16.6	awareness and understanding of the Constitution among the American people.
0:21.4	Article 2, Section 2 of the Constitution says that the President shall have the power to grant
0:26.9	reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States except in cases of impeachment.
0:34.8	On today's episode, we'll discuss the scope of the pardon power
0:38.6	and ask an important question,
0:42.1	can the president pardon himself?
0:44.2	I'm joined by two of America's leading experts on the
0:47.2	pardon power, two great friends of We The People,
0:49.7	Brian Kalk, is Professor of Law and Harold Norris
0:52.4	Faculty Scholar at Michigan State University Law School.
0:55.2	He's the author of many works, including his student note in the Yale Law Journal,
1:00.6	Pardon me, the constitutional case against presidential self-partons.
1:05.2	He's also co-author of the Constitution Center's explainer on the 25th Amendment on the
1:11.0	interactive Constitution.
1:12.0	Brian, it is wonderful to have you back on the show.
1:14.0	Great to be here.
1:16.0	And Cy Prokash is James Monroe, distinguished professor of law at the University of Virginia.
1:20.0	His most recent book, which we discussed on a recent program is The Living Presidency,
1:24.8	an originalist argument against its ever expanding powers.
	...

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