Campaign Legal Center’s Proposed Solutions to Corruption of the Presidential Pardon Power

Under the U.S. Constitution, the president has significant power to offer clemency and grant pardons for federal offenses. This authority was designed to be a tool for mercy and to provide a means for correcting inequities within the criminal legal system. However, the expansive nature of the pardon power has sometimes invited questionable grants of executive clemency by presidents of both parties, and there has long been a need for greater guardrails to deter corruption. Since returning to office, President Donald Trump has exacerbated this problem to an enormous degree, abusing public trust and fundamentally transforming the presidential pardon power into a tool for rewarding donors and allies. In this report, Campaign Legal Center proposes several recommendations for reforms that Congress could enact without a constitutional amendment to address corruption on the part of pardon seekers and intermediaries, which could mitigate many of the worst abuses and help restore the rule of law. These solutions include strengthening disclosure requirements for pardon recipients and lobbyists; clarifying civil and criminal liability for pardon seekers who corruptly seek to buy a pardon; and establishing a congressional commission to study presidential pardons.