Whew. If anyone tried to keep track of the pardons issued by President Trump at the end of his first term, President Biden at the end of his term, and by President Trump at the beginning of his second term, it may certainly appear that presidential pardons are 1) easy to get; 2) available if, or even not if, someone has actually been investigated or charged; 3) issued even if someone is in jail for actions against the government; or 4) pick a situation.
It certainly appears that pardons are easy to get if you know the right person.
That right person, of course, would be the President of the United States. Our Constitution, in Article II, sets out his powers, including the following: “… and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.”
So many individuals have been pardoned recently that we decided to look up the history of Presidential pardons. Our source for most of the following is the online encyclopedia W...