**Previous Episode: [[BDE389 ]]** **Next Episode: [[BDE391 ]]** %%Post image thumbnail below.%%  > [!abstract|no-i] **Episode Overview** **Date Aired:** [[12-12-2024]] **Title:** Pardon Me, Mr. President **Episode:** 390 **Description:** From the Whiskey Rebels to Jimmy Hoffa to [[Hunter Biden]], a look at the most controversial presidential pardons throughout US history. **Link:** https://rumble.com/v5yr5dq-big-dig-energy-390-pardon-me-mr.-president.html **Tags:** %%<https://historydraft.com/happened/what-happened/1-January/world>%% ## Replay %% Get embed URL then highlight and hit ALT + I%% <iframe src="https://rumble.com/embed/v5winpw/?pub=6eeyh" allow="fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" style="height:100%;width:100%; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; "></iframe> <br> ## Greetings & Announcements 1. Hi! ## Segments ### Presidential Pardons The plenary power (complete and absolute power to take action on a particular issue, with no limitations) to grant a pardon or a reprieve is granted to the president by Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution; the only limits mentioned in the Constitution are that pardons are limited to federal offenses, and that they cannot affect an impeachment process. Clause 1 covers matters involving command of the military, opinions of cabinet secretaries, and pardons. > The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and **<font color="#f2f2f2">he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.</font>** #### Biden Pardons Biden issued his first [three pardons](https://www.justice.gov/pardon/pardons-granted-president-joseph-biden-2021-present) on April 26, 2022. [Hunter Biden Pardon](https://www.justice.gov/d9/2024-12/biden_warrant.pdf) <div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 60%;"><iframe src="https://docs.google.com/viewer?embedded=true&url=https://www.justice.gov/d9/2024-12/biden_warrant.pdf" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen></iframe></div> New list: [Clemency Recipient List](https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/12/12/clemency-recipient-list-7/) ### Lists |President|Pardons|Notes| |---|---|---| | George Washington | 16 | Pardoned participants of the Whiskey Rebellion (1795). | | John Adams | 20 | Pardoned soldiers who had been convicted of desertion during the Quasi-War with France (1798-1800). | | Thomas Jefferson | 119 | | | James Madison | 196 | | | James Monroe | 419 | | | John Quincy Adams | 183 | | | Andrew Jackson | 386 | | | Martin Van Buren | 168 | | | William Henry Harrison | 0 | | | John Tyler | 209 | | | James K. Polk | 268 | | | Zachary Taylor | 38 | | | Millard Fillmore | 170 | | | Franklin Pierce | 142 | | | James Buchanan | 150 | | | Abraham Lincoln | 343 | | | Andrew Johnson | 654 | Excludes thousands of pardons for ex-Confederates | | Ulysses S. Grant | 1332 | | | Rutherford B. Hayes | 893 | | | James A. Garfield | 0 | | | Chester A. Arthur | 337 | | | Grover Cleveland | 1107 | Estimate | | Benjamin Harrison | 613 | | | William McKinley | 918 | Estimate | | Theodore Roosevelt | 981 | Estimate | | William Howard Taft | 758 | | | Woodrow Wilson | 2480 | | | Warren G. Harding | 800 | | | Calvin Coolidge | 1545 | | | Herbert Hoover | 1385 | | | Franklin D. Roosevelt | 3687 | | | Harry S. Truman | 2044 | | | Dwight D. Eisenhower | 1157 | | | John F. Kennedy | 575 | | | Lyndon B. Johnson | 1187 | | | Richard Nixon | 926 | | | Gerald Ford | 409 | Pardoned Richard Nixon in September 1974. | | Jimmy Carter | 566 | Excludes over 200,000 pardoned for Vietnam draft evasion | | Ronald Reagan | 406 | | | George H. W. Bush | 77 | | | [[Bill Clinton]] | 459 | | | [[George W. Bush]] | 200 | | | [[Barack Obama]] | 1927 | | | [[Donald Trump]] | 237 | The following are the most notable instances: Clint Lorance, Mathew Golsteyn and Michael Behenna, Trump has also pardoned Lil Wayne (Dwayne Michael Carter Jr.) and Kodak Black (Bill K. Kapri) for weapon and drug charges. | | [[Joe Biden]] | 8027 | Pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, in December 2024. Includes 6,500 pardoned for simple possession of marijuana | ### List 1. George Washington (1789-1797): Pardoned participants of the Whiskey Rebellion (1795). 2. John Adams (1797-1801): Pardoned soldiers who had been convicted of desertion during the Quasi-War with France (1798-1800). 3. Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809): Pardoned several people convicted under the Alien and Sedition Acts (1801-1809). 4. James Madison (1809-1817): Pardoned several people convicted of treason for their involvement in the Burr Conspiracy (1807). 5. James Monroe (1817-1825): Pardoned several people convicted of piracy in the Caribbean (1821). 6. John Quincy Adams (1825-1829): Pardoned several people convicted of smuggling (1828). 7. Andrew Jackson (1829-1837): Pardoned several people convicted of land fraud in the Southwest Territory (1830). 8. Martin Van Buren (1837-1841): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Patriot War, a conflict between U.S. and Canadian rebels (1838). 9. William Henry Harrison (1841): Did not issue any pardons during his brief presidency. 10. John Tyler (1841-1845): Pardoned several people convicted of treason for their involvement in the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode Island (1844). 1.  11. James K. Polk (1845-1849): Pardoned several people convicted of desertion during the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). 12. Zachary Taylor (1849-1850): Did not issue any pardons during his brief presidency. 13. Millard Fillmore (1850-1853): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the San Francisco Vigilance Committee, a group that targeted criminals and political opponents (1851). 14. Franklin Pierce (1853-1857): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Kansas-Nebraska Act riots (1854). 15. James Buchanan (1857-1861): Pardoned several people convicted of treason for their involvement in the Mormon War (1857-1858). 16. Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865): Pardoned several people convicted of draft evasion during the Civil War (1861-1865). 17. Andrew Johnson (1865-1869): Issued numerous pardons to former Confederate soldiers and officials after the Civil War (1865-1869). 18. Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Whiskey Ring scandal (1875). 19. Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Great Railroad Strike of 1877 (1877). 20. James A. Garfield (1881): Did not issue any pardons during his brief presidency. 21. Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Star Route scandal (1881-1882). 22. Grover Cleveland (1885-1889, 1893-1897): Pardoned members of the Molly Maguires, a secret society of Irish-American coal miners (1887). 23. Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Pullman Strike (1894). 24. William McKinley (1897-1901): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Spanish-American War (1898). 25. Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Brownsville Raid, a racially charged incident involving black soldiers (1906). 26. William Howard Taft (1909-1913): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Mexican Revolution (1910-1911). 27. Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921): Pardoned socialist leader Eugene V. Debs, who had been convicted under the Espionage Act for his opposition to World War I (1921). 28. Warren G. Harding (1921-1923): Did not issue any high-profile pardons during his presidency. 29. Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929): Pardoned several people convicted of participating in the Teapot Dome scandal (1924). 30. Herbert Hoover (1929-1933): Pardoned Ponzi scheme operator Charles Ponzi (1932). 31. Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945): Pardoned several people convicted of violating the Volstead Act during Prohibition (1933-1935). 32. Harry S. Truman (1945-1953): Pardoned several people convicted of draft evasion during World War II (1945-1953). 33. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961): Pardoned several people convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee (1953-1961). 34. John F. Kennedy (1961-1963): Pardoned several people convicted of draft evasion during the Korean War (1961-1963). 35. Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969): Pardoned several people convicted of draft evasion during the Vietnam War (1963-1969). 36. Richard Nixon (1969-1974): Pardoned Teamsters Union leader Jimmy Hoffa (1971). 37. Gerald Ford (1974-1977): Pardoned former President Richard Nixon for any crimes he may have committed as president (1974). 38. Jimmy Carter (1977-1981): Issued a blanket pardon to hundreds of thousands of men who had dodged the draft during the Vietnam War (1977). 39. Ronald Reagan (1981-1989): Pardoned New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who had been convicted of making illegal campaign contributions and obstruction of justice (1989). 40. George H.W. Bush (1989-1993): Pardoned six Reagan administration officials involved in the Iran-Contra affair (1992). 41. Bill Clinton (1993-2001): Pardoned financier Marc Rich, who had been convicted of tax evasion and was a fugitive living in Switzerland (2001). 42. George W. Bush (2001-2009): Commuted the prison sentence of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who had been convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in the Valerie Plame affair (2007). 43. Barack Obama (2009-2017): Commuted the sentence of Chelsea Manning, who had been convicted of leaking classified information to [[Wikileaks]] (2017). 44. Donald Trump (2017-2021): Pardoned several high-profile individuals, including former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, who had been convicted of lying to the [[FBI]] (2020), and several people involved in the Russia investigation (2020). ### Gerald Ford Pardons Nixon Description: > President Gerald R. Ford became the 38th President of the United States on August 9, 1974, following the resignation of Richard Nixon. One month later, from the Oval Office, President Ford proclaimed a pardon for the former President regarding his actions involving the Watergate scandal. President Ford received legal counsel regarding pardoning Nixon even both he was convicted or even formally charged in a court of law. > > While there was legal standing in the decision, President Ford knew that pardoning Nixon was the only way to avoid a lengthy, public trial, if a fair trial for Nixon could even be possible. More importantly, President Ford knew that the pardon was the right decision to move the country past Watergate, restore integrity to the Executive Branch, and concentrate efforts on solving the nation's issues.  ### Bill Clinton & Marc Rich [Bill Clinton’s Last Outrage; The President’s Defenders Feel Betrayed by His Pardon of Marc Rich](https://www.brookings.edu/articles/bill-clintons-last-outrage-the-presidents-defenders-feel-betrayed-by-his-pardon-of-marc-rich/) > But Clinton’s truly remarkable achievement was in creating a consensus against himself with his pardon of Marc Rich, popularly known as the “fugitive financier,” and otherwise known as large-scale tax cheat and buster of sanctions. On this one, I’d wager all the money Rich owes the government that Clinton’s friends are even more outraged than his enemies. > > Take Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat and [[House Judiciary Committee]] member who was one of Clinton’s most forceful and articulate defenders during the impeachment mess. “I was very angry about it,” Frank says of the Rich pardon. “It was a real betrayal by Bill Clinton of all who had been strongly supportive of him to do something this unjustified. It was contemptuous.” %%Footer Starts Here%% --- ![[Brain Icon 1.png|center]] <b><font color="#ffffff"> <center>You might not have noticed it… but your brain did.</center> </font></b> --- ### Tags ### Linked Pages & Footnotes