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Congressman Cohen Condemns Trump’s Corrupt Pardons

January 20, 2021

On last day, President grants clemency to the wealthy and well-connected

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) responded to President Trump's final outrage in office by condemning his pardons of the corrupt and well-connected. Congressman Cohen is the Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties and has introduced three Constitutional Amendments since October 2017 to limit the pardon power, most recently on the first day of the new Congress on January 3. The proposed Constitutional

Amendment introduced this year would forbid pardons given with corrupt intent.

Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

"It's fitting but sad, but not all that surprising, that on his last full day in office, Trump is advancing his political interests by pardoning a group including his former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, currently under indictment for fraudulently bilking Trump supporters in a build-the-wall scheme; a disgraced Trump campaign fund-raiser, Elliott Broidy; corrupt and convicted former Republican Congressmen Rick Renzi of Arizona, Robert Hayes of North Carolina and Randall "Duke" Cunningham of California; and others whose chief claim to fame is their violation of the public trust.

"The pardon power is intended to prevent injustice and to show mercy, but this president has used it to reward political buddies and the well-connected. While it is good that some grants of clemency went to those convicted of victimless drug crimes, this president failed to use a well-established process for evaluating cases and instead went with recommendations from celebrities and those with personal contact to him."

Congressman Cohen introduced a Constitutional Amendment on January 3 that, if ratified, would prohibit a president from pardoning himself or herself, family members, or campaign and administration officials, and would void pardons made with corrupt intent.