Red Mosquito

Rangi Guy wrote:So Trump's trip to Europe went well huh?

Following Donald Trump's trip, Angela Merkel says Europe can't rely on US

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/930 ... rely-on-us

Honestly, it's weird that it took this long for one of them to come straight out and say it.

Oh, the irony.

Simple Torture wrote:

BurtReynolds wrote:

96583UP wrote:are there any limitations on presidential pardons?

are there certain crimes that cannot be pardoned? (e.g. treason)

I don't think so.

A quick Google search told me that the only real limit is that you can't pardon someone if it has to do with an impeachment proceeding--so that, for example, if the Congress impeached Mike Pence, Trump couldn't pardon him so that he'd stay VP / avoid a trial in the Senate.

Constitution, Article 2 Section 2 wrote:The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

Ford's pardoning of Nixon should have been challenged in court, though. Doesn't make sense that you can pardon a crime that wasn't charged.

Green Habit wrote:

Simple Torture wrote:

BurtReynolds wrote:

96583UP wrote:are there any limitations on presidential pardons?

are there certain crimes that cannot be pardoned? (e.g. treason)

I don't think so.

A quick Google search told me that the only real limit is that you can't pardon someone if it has to do with an impeachment proceeding--so that, for example, if the Congress impeached Mike Pence, Trump couldn't pardon him so that he'd stay VP / avoid a trial in the Senate.

Constitution, Article 2 Section 2 wrote:The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

Ford's pardoning of Nixon should have been challenged in court, though. Doesn't make sense that you can pardon a crime that wasn't charged.

Yeah, it still boggles my mind that that just kind of went by the boards (as far as I can tell). I know Scooter Libby was a pretty controversial pardon, too, but I think pardoning your son-in-law would take the cake.

Simple Torture wrote:Yeah, it still boggles my mind that that just kind of went by the boards (as far as I can tell). I know Scooter Libby was a pretty controversial pardon, too, but I think pardoning your son-in-law would take the cake.

To be clear, I do believe that the president's power to pardon is vast, and rightly so. Scooter Libby, Marc Rich, et al may have been controversial politically, but not legally. And I don't think that Nixon ever would have been charged with a crime. Ford's DOJ definitely wasn't going to do it, and by 1977 at the earliest Watergate would have legitimately been a dead horse.

But by definition, you can't pardon someone if there's no crime (yet) to pardon. Ford preemptively struck in a gamble that hoped would be to his party's advantage come November 1974. He chose poorly.

Did Carter run at all explicitly on Watergate or the pardon in 1976?

McParadigm wrote:

Rangi Guy wrote:So Trump's trip to Europe went well huh?

Following Donald Trump's trip, Angela Merkel says Europe can't rely on US

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/930 ... rely-on-us

Honestly, it's weird that it took this long for one of them to come straight out and say it.

Make america great again indeed

Rangi Guy wrote:So Trump's trip to Europe went well huh?

Following Donald Trump's trip, Angela Merkel says Europe can't rely on US

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/930 ... rely-on-us

McParadigm wrote:

Rangi Guy wrote:So Trump's trip to Europe went well huh?

Following Donald Trump's trip, Angela Merkel says Europe can't rely on US

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/930 ... rely-on-us

Honestly, it's weird that it took this long for one of them to come straight out and say it.

It's just posturing and part of the larger plan to create an EU integrated army. For something. Maybe a subsidized MIC like the US has to stop the leak of manufacturing and tech jobs from fleeing the continent completely?

Tough, undeterred France and a weak, isolationist America. Sort of returning to pre-WWI realities.

McParadigm wrote:

Tough, undeterred France and a weak, isolationist America. Sort of returning to pre-WWI realities.

But we're a long way from bolt-action rifles and mustard gas...

C'est la vie.

can we go back to calling them French Fries then?

Strat wrote:can we go back to calling them French Fries then?

Right? Le jour de gloire est arrivé and all that shizz.

midterm elections will be here before you know it

Strat wrote:can we go back to calling them French Fries then?

Maybe if we approach the Middle East like we approached major wars in old times...profiteer while the French blunt the enemy, then swoop in and act like the world owes us a fucking favor....we'd stop having to pretend that sorry stalemates were wins.

96583UP wrote:midterm elections will be here before you know it

Everybody knows
That the world is full of stupid people
So meet me at the mission, we'll divy up there.

McParadigm wrote:

96583UP wrote:midterm elections will be here before you know it

Everybody knows
That the world is full of stupid people
So meet me at the mission, we'll divy up there.

My god i love that song

Strat wrote:

McParadigm wrote:

96583UP wrote:midterm elections will be here before you know it

Everybody knows
That the world is full of stupid people
So meet me at the mission, we'll divy up there.

My god i love that song

Roger Clyne wrote some pretty good songs for a while.

McParadigm wrote:

Strat wrote:

McParadigm wrote:

96583UP wrote:midterm elections will be here before you know it

Everybody knows
That the world is full of stupid people
So meet me at the mission, we'll divy up there.

My god i love that song

Roger Clyne wrote some pretty good songs for a while.

I mostly just loved the guitar playing on that one