Hello and welcome to the 538 Politics Podcast.

I'm Gaelin Drouk.

President Trump has about a month and a half left in the White House.

And it's typical for lame duck presidents to use that time to issue pardons and commute

the sentences of people who've been convicted of federal crimes.

This may remember President Obama commuted the sentences of nearly 2,000 drug offenders

during his final week in office.

According to reporting from various major outlets, President Trump is considering taking

a rather different approach, possibly issuing blanket preemptive pardons for allies and

family members.

He's even claimed that he has the right to pardon himself.

Like many things during the Trump presidency, those pardons would be largely unprecedented

and controversial.

But presidents do have a lot of leeway when it comes to the power to grant clemency.

So to better understand that power, how the president has used it and may plan to use it,

here with me today is Amelia Thompson DeVoe.

Amelia is of course a senior writer here at 538 and our legal correspondent.

Welcome Amelia.

Thanks, Gaelin.

Nice to be here.

So bring me back to Civics 101.

Why do presidents have the ability to just override the judicial system and grant pardons

...