Trump's motley crew asks for pardons before he exits the White House

Several of former President Donald Trump's associates have reportedly requested pardons before he makes a formal exit from the White House. The list of individuals broaching the subject of preemptive pardons that would seek to shield those individuals from prosecution includes none other than Rudy Giuliani, the attorney leading the charge to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential election. We know, of course, that the chances of overturning the results are now a longshot. According to sources familiar with the matter, Trump has been in discussion with several people close to him, including his children and son-in-law, CNN reports. An investigation is now probing a "secret lobbying scheme" attached to the pardons, which Trump called "fake news."

In addition to Trump's children, son-in-law, and personal attorney, the list comprises folks who are close to the president and could be legally vulnerable but are yet to be charged. In the case of Donald Trump Jr., he was under investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller for contacts he had with Russians. He was never charged. Furthermore, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner had supplied falsified information about his foreign contacts when applying for his security clearance. Despite this, Trump issued security clearance anyway. These are just two instances in a long list of potential charges that the Republican and his friends could face in the future.

Trump argues, of course, that this is all the result of bias. He claims he and his family have been "unfairly targeted," and that this could potentially worsen under the Biden Justice Department. Therefore, many of the president's lawyers and allies have been lobbying him for pardons ranging from their personal clients to people whom Vice President-elect Kamala Harris has put behind bars (though it must be noted that she was a state prosecutor and pardons can apply only to federal crimes). The New York Times was one of the first to report on the preemptive pardons for Ivanka Trump, Eric Trump, and Trump Jr., but Giuliani denied holding discussions regarding the subject. He affirmed that the news outlet was "completely wrong."

At present, it is not clear what potential criminal exposure Giuliani or other associates are attempting to preempt exactly, but a source familiar with the discussions simply cited what friends and allies of the President see as hostility from the incoming Biden administration toward Trump associates. The pardons could be blanket protection from future prosecution. It is perhaps important to note that nine of Trump's closest allies, such as his former national security adviser Michael Flynn and longtime friend Roger Stone, have been indicted or found guilty of crimes related to a plethora of alleged criminal conspiracies. The new pleas for pardons have arrived right after the President's decision to pardon Flynn.

Flynn has since been granted a full pardon, which absolves him of charges related to lying to federal agents over his contact with the Russian ambassador to the United States. This pardon is Trump's second act of clemency related to the prosecutions of his advisers. One other major ally is expected to appeal further to his instinct for self-preservation. Of course, the move to issue pardons to himself and his family has been encouraged by Trump's fans over at Fox News; Host Sean Hannity said on his radio show, "The President out the door needs to pardon his whole family and himself. I assume that the power of the pardon is absolute, and that he should be able to pardon anybody that he wants to."