The Pardon Path
One of the keys in the Republican presidential caucus and primary campaign is for candidates not named Trump to gain past Trump supporters.
But that’s hard when there still is a guy named Trump in the race.
Some are pledging to take the Make America Great Again agenda even farther, citing their youth and the call for a new generation of leadership.
Still a tough sell when the original is in the field.
Of late, however, a new path—the pardon path.
You’ve heard Gov. Ron DeSantis criticize political prosecutions, from those related to January 6, 2021 to current documents-related prosecutions of the former president. DeSantis says if he feels it’s a political prosecution, he’ll issue that victim a pardon…up to and including Trump. Those statements were made even before the new federal indictment.
Taking that a step further is Vivek Ramaswamy, who told us on KXEL Monday that he would issue Trump a full pardon on day one of a Ramaswamy presidency, and demanded information about any contact between the president and the attorney general on the Trump case…he then flew to Miami on the day Trump was indicted there, publicly signing a “pardon Trump” pledge and urging his fellow candidates to do the same—much like the RNC is insisting on a loyalty oath for candidates who want to be on the debate stage in August, pledging to support whoever the GOP nominee is.
That’s all no doubt going to appeal to Trump backers, who think he’s gotten a raw deal for years now. And it may also appeal to former Trump backers who like the man, like the policies, but don’t like the baggage or worry about winning in November 2024.
Taken separately, it’s quite something…that a candidate promises if he wins, he’ll pardon one of his opponents for the nomination. But that’s America in the summer of 2023.
