President Trump’s reported pardon list includes Ivanka, Lil Wayne
The rapper is facing 10 years in prison after being charged with possession of a firearm while traveling on a private jet to Miami
President Donald Trump has reportedly suggested to top advisers that he wants to pardon himself before leaving office.
Trump is expected to announce a list of pardons on Jan. 19 — that includes senior White House officials, Donald Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, and rappers Kodak Black and Lil Wayne, according to Bloomberg. theGRIO previously reported, Weezy, a pro-Trump supporter, is facing 10 years in prison after being charged with possession of a firearm while traveling on a private jet to Miami.
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According to TMZ, federal agents received an anonymous tip that led them to Wayne’s private jet at the Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport on Dec. 23, 2019. When they began searching the plane, Wayne admitted he had a gun in his bag. The feds found a gold-plated Remington 1911, .45-caliber handgun loaded with 6 rounds of ammunition. They also claim to have found a bag containing drugs such as cocaine, ecstasy, and oxycodone. Lil Wayne pleaded guilty in federal court last month.
Meanwhile, inquiring minds want to know if the president has the authority to pardon himself, and the dangerous precedent it could set if he does.
In 2018 Trump tweeted that he had the “absolute right” to self-pardon. The former reality TV star has reportedly been warned by his team that he could be facing a legal nightmare for inciting the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
“The main argument in favor of the self-pardon power is that the Constitution does not expressly rule it out, and that the pardon power is extremely expansive,” said Brian Kalt, a professor at Michigan State University College of Law.
“The argument against self-pardonability starts with the idea that granting a pardon is, by definition, something one can only do to another person,” Kalt added. “There is also a general principle in the law against being the judge in one’s own case.”
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Legal analysts have noted that a self-pardon would trigger legal challenges that aim to undo the president’s protection.
Trump has already issued pardons to several of his loyalists, including Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and Charles Kushner, father of the president’s son-in-law.
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