[Hoot Gibson]

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...rt/617397/

“Remarkably, Mason predicted Donald Trump’s pardon of Paul Manafort and Roger Stone more than 230 years ago.

Back in 1787, when the Constitutional Convention was drafting the part of the Constitution that would soon become the presidential pardon power, Mason unequivocally opposed the provision. The president, he said, “ought not to have the power of pardoning, because he may frequently pardon crimes which were advised by himself. It may happen, at some future day, that he will establish a monarchy, and destroy the republic. If he has the power of granting pardons before indictment, or conviction, may he not stop inquiry and prevent detection”

Trump has given the Founding Fathers plenty of reason to toss and turn in their graves.

Mason lost the debate over pardons more than 230 years ago, just as you have lost this one, although he presented his argument more eloquently. Your argument would have been more timely at the end of the Obama and Clinton presidencies.

We made it to the day where an authoritarian will encourage lawlessness and then he will pardon his criminals.  

I know you’re trying to tie this to former Democrat presidents to distract from the obvious malfeasance but you’re struggling, Hoot, you have a few tells.

Actually, you are struggling because you know so little of your own country's history. I think you were shocked to learn that every other president in modern history pardoned more people than Donald Trump has. Now, to save face you have tried to make a "quality" argument. The problem with that approach is that there has probably never been a president who issued more dubious pardons than Bill Clinton.

As I said, I really have no problems with presidents and governors having the power to grant pardons and clemency but you are really twisting yourself into knots in trying to demonize Trump for doing something that all of his predecessors have done. I am glad that you are not a judge. I have never seen such a lack of objectivity paired with such pervasive hypocrisy.