Republican Frontrunner Donald Trump said he is “very unlikely” to pardon himself if he wins the presidential election, although he said he doesn’t expect convictions in any of the four upcoming trials.
What Did I Do Wrong?
The former president expressed doubts during his interview on NBC’s Meet The Press.
“What did I do wrong? I didn’t do anything wrong,” Trump said. “You mean because I challenge an election, they want to put me in jail?”
Trump became the first US president to be indicted and the first US president to have his mugshot taken after the Georgia election resulted in an indictment.
Making History
No president, vice president, or former president had ever been indicted in US history.
Trump has been charged in four criminal cases. He is facing charges related to his attempts to interfere with election results, falsifying business documents, and illegally withholding classified documents.
In Georgia, the former president faces 13 felony counts for his alleged election interference. He pleaded not guilty to Georgia election interference charges.
Multiple Charges
The investigation in Georgia was sparked in part by a leaked phone call in which the former president asked the state’s top election official to “find 11,780 votes.”
Trump faces 34 felony counts related to his alleged hush payments to an adult movie star, Stormy Daniels, before the 2016 election to silence her.
He also faces 40 felony counts in Florida for withholding classified documents and impeding efforts to retrieve them.
Federal prosecutors are accusing Trump of taking classified national security documents when he left the White House in early 2021 and stashing them at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort.
Storming the Capitol
Trump faces four felony counts for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Washington, DC.
Trump’s effort to delegitimize Joe Biden’s victory culminated in the Jan. 6 riot when a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol and disrupted the peaceful transfer of power.
Federal prosecutors have charged Trump with four federal crimes stemming from his attempts to derail the transfer of power.
Delaying Tactics
Trump is currently trying to delay the four criminal trials that he is facing.
Trump also said he talked about self-pardoning before leaving the office in early 2021.
“People said, ‘Would you like to pardon yourself?’ I had a couple of attorneys that said, ‘You can do it if you want,'” Trump said. “I had some people that said, ‘It would look bad if you do it because I think it would look terrible.'”
“Let me just tell you. I said, ‘The last thing I’d ever do is give myself a pardon,'” Trump said.
Presidency Could Affect His Trial
Trump could have an impact on the two federal cases that he is facing if elected as a president.
They include election fraud charges in Washington, DC, and improper handling of classified documents charges in Florida.
Trump’s criminal cases are set to go on trial next year, which will be in the middle of his presidential campaign if he becomes the Republican Party’s nominee.
The post Is Trump’s Eye on a Return to the White House Actually a Bid for Self-Pardoning Privileges of the Presidency? first appeared on The Net Worth Of.
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Michael Candelori
Source: USA Today