Dem
47
GOP
53
"Affordability" is a serious candidate for Word of the Year. We are certainly going to hear about it day and night from Labor Day to Election Day, what with buying gas, food and other items increasingly a problem for millions of people. But one bright spot is that one item is getting cheaper: pardons. Consider these past examples:
In all cases, the convicts were facing prison time and/or huge fines and the pardon erased all of that. Milton probably had the best return on investment, since for $1.8 million he made a $660 million penalty go away.
There are other examples, but these give an idea of what pardons used to cost. Now there is this. Adam Kidan was a business partner of Jack Abramoff, who was convicted of mail fraud, conspiracy to bribe public officials, and tax evasion. It was a huge scandal in its day. Kidan pleaded guilty to fraud and conspiracy and was sentenced to 70 months in prison. He was paroled in 2009 after serving 31 months. Even though he has already paid for his crimes, he wanted his record expunged. He donated $2,600 to the reelection campaign of Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA), who is in a tough fight in his R+1 district. Trump traveled to eastern Pennsylvania on June 23 to campaign with Mackenzie. On July 3, Trump gave Kidan the pardon he wanted. After the article linked above was published, the White House issued a statement noting that Trump takes the pardon power seriously and that he is the final decision maker.
Now, the pardon didn't get Kidan out of a prison sentence and didn't save him any money, so this is kind of small ball. Nevertheless, it sure looks like Trump is tackling the affordability crisis personally by bringing the cost of buying a pardon down to a level where Everyman can afford one. You have to give him credit for that. (V)