Somewhat overlooked in Trump’s $1.776 billion slush fund is the way Trump found a way to pardon himself using civil litigation and without using the pardon power. Let’s say for example, he murders someone on 5th Ave and is investigated for it. He can then file a civil suit against his own government claiming the govt wrongfully investigated him, and then settle that civil lawsuit and have the justice department promise, as part of the settlement, never to prosecute him criminally for the 5th Ave muder. Voila! He can de facto pardon himself using a collusive settlement of a bogus civil claim without using the pardon power.
Somewhat overlooked in Trump’s $1.776 billion slush fund is the way Trump found a way to pardon himself using civil litigation and without using the pardon power. Let’s say for example, he murders someone on 5th Ave and is investigated for it. He can then file a civil suit against his own government claiming the govt wrongfully investigated him, and then settle that civil lawsuit and have the justice department promise, as part of the settlement, never to prosecute him criminally for the 5th Ave muder. Voila! He can de facto pardon himself using a collusive settlement of a bogus civil claim without using the pardon power.