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The power of forgiveness, which comes from the Constitution, is one of the most extensive available to a president. The nation’s founders saw the power of forgiveness as a way to show mercy and serve the public good.
While pardons are generally granted to individuals who have been prosecuted, pardons can cover conduct that has not yet led to legal proceedings.
A pardon is not reviewable by other branches of government and the president does not have to give a reason for issuing it.
A pardon clears a criminal conviction. A different form of executive clemency, known as commutation, leaves the sentence intact but removes the punishment.
But the power of forgiveness is not absolute. Essentially, clemency only applies to federal crimes. That means pardons would not protect, for example, Trump associates from the criminal investigation being conducted by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, a state attorney.
The Vance investigation, which began more than two years ago, stemmed from secret money payments that former attorney and repairman to President Michael Cohen paid before the 2016 election to two women, an adult film star and a ex-Playboy model, who said they had had sex. encounters with Trump. Trump has denied the encounters and has said the investigation is politically motivated.
