Donald Trump prepares to shoot himself in the foot

| 4:06 pm EDT April 1, 2018
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It appears that once again Donald Trump is attempting to shoot himself in the foot. Following the recent departure of attorney John Dowd from Trump’s legal team defending him against Special Counsel Robert Mueller, it became known that they had previously been discussing presidential pardons Michael Flynn and Paul Manafort. Flynn, Trump’s disgraced former National Security Advisor, has pled guilty to lying to the FBI and is now cooperating with Mueller’s investigation. Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chairman and manager, has yet to agree to a deal with Mueller, despite his longtime partner Rick Gates spilling the beans.

Robert Bauer, President Obama’s White House counsel, has argued that such pardons would possibly be a “test run for shutting down the Russia investigation.” However, a pardon also comes with some legal attachments. By accepting a pardon, one accepts guilt, while also removing one’s ability to plead the Fifth Amendment, which protects against self-incrimination. By accepting the pardon, the person would no longer be subjected to prosecution, so there would be no way to self-incriminate.

This would mean that anyone pardoned by Trump would have to testify, under oath, about everything they have on him. While Flynn has already provided Mueller with a likely treasure chest of evidence of illegal actions, Manafort has yet to agree to such a deal. The second Manafort accepted a pardon, he would be forced to admit his guilt while also having to testify to all the dirt he has on Trump. While we know Trump is not smart enough to realize this, and his current lack of decent lawyers is possibly a part of this issue, Mueller is well aware of this.

With all we know of Robert Mueller’s smart and stellar career, it would not surprise anyone if he’s actually hoping for Donald Trump to pardon some of his co-conspirators. While some say that pardoning Flynn and/or Manafort would be grounds for impeachment – since he’s obstructing justice by trying to silence witnesses – there is clearly more political and legal damage ahead if Trump makes that decision and again shoots himself in the foot.