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Former President Donald Trump bears the dubious distinction of being the first president to be indicted both federally and locally, in addition to two impeachments. Despite the appearance of strong evidence in his indictments, Republicans have mostly rallied around the former president and decried his legal woes as unfair, partisan, and—perhaps the most farcical allegation of all—as "election interference."
Nevertheless, there is a strong argument for President Biden to pardon Trump. Centrists are understandably frustrated and dismayed by the divisive political atmosphere in the country, and some have proposed a pardon for the federal documents case as a way of putting the nation on the path toward healing. Biden ran in 2020 as a uniter, and some claim that this would solidify his claim to that title. They also argue that a pardon would blunt the preposterous "weaponization of the federal government" claim. Others believe President Biden could bring the country together and win over independents by showing Donald Trump mercy.
All of those arguments are logical. But they are wrong. If Biden pardoned Trump, it would backfire against the President and Democrats, confuse independents, lower morale in the Department of Justice, and not win over a single MAGA Republican.
If President Biden were to pardon Donald Trump, it would be perceived as weakness, not only by progressives who are still not completely in line with the President, but by the MAGA base. Biden would not be celebrated for that action, and Trump is not a gracious winner. Trump will claim victory, innocence, and still claim political victimization by Biden—his pardoner. Trump will continue to make the argument that this ordeal was meant to weaken him politically and make sure he doesn't occupy the White House. And the body politic will remain schizophrenic conjoined twins.
Politically, Biden could lose whatever enthusiasm he has within the Democratic Party by pardoning Trump. There are many rank and file Democrats who want to see the wealthy and powerful held to the same standard as other Americans. Kendra Kingsbury, a former FBI agent, was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for willfully retaining classified documents at her home. By pardoning Donald Trump, Biden would lend credence to the idea that he pulled strings to protect higher class individuals, including his son, Hunter.
Republicans are certain to spin a pardon as being motivated by fear of his own alleged and unproven criminality and that of his family members. They will point to it as not a benevolent gesture, but a cover up of a double standard due to the fact he retained classified documents at his Delaware home. Pardoning Trump allows for further conflation of their cases, which couldn't be more different.
And a Trump pardon would not move the country forward. Donald Trump and his Republican allies are dead set on "retribution" and a pardon is not likely to change that. The country can't move forward without the GOP, and they aren't even done talking about the 2020 election, nearly three years later.
President Biden also vowed not to pardon Trump if he were found liable for a crime in 2020. If he were to pardon Trump, it would be seen as a promise made and not kept by many Democrats. Biden has also claimed that he would steer clear of interfering with the Department of Justice. A pardon would demoralize the Special Counsel's investigative team and make the investigation a huge waste of time and money.
Biden could certainly commute a prison sentence if Trump is convicted in the documents case. Many Democrats would understand not putting a 77 year old man behind bars. But in order to recapture independent voters, Biden should tout his many bipartisan accomplishments and keep his promise not to interfere with the Justice Department.
Dr. Jason Nichols is an award winning senior lecturer in the African American Studies Department at the University of Maryland College Park and was the longtime editor-in-chief of Words Beats & Life: The Global Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
