In the wake of his 17-year jail sentence, Joseph Bigg said: “Oh, I know he’ll pardon. I believe that with all my heart.”

  • Plap plap 𓁑𓂸 @lemmyf.uk
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    105
    ·
    1 year ago

    Regardless of political leanings, if one of the steps in your master plan is “receive pardon from glorious leader once they return to power”, you might want to rethink what you’re about to do.

    • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      People in the freaken gulags were waiting for Stalin to pardon them. No one, including myself, wants to accept the existence they almost certainly have and will have hope for saviour. Even if it is the person who put them there.

  • akai@kbin.social
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    43
    ·
    1 year ago

    I’d pay good money to see his face the moment he realizes that Trump isn’t going to help him

  • Blackmist@feddit.uk
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    36
    ·
    1 year ago

    He thought Trump was gonna pay their lawyers as well.

    Not the sharpest tool in the shed this one.

  • BradleyUffner@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    36
    ·
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    Dude, he’s already forgotten about you, if he ever knew who you were in the first place. He most certainly doesn’t care if you rot in jail or not. In fact, he’d probably get off on it if he knew.

    • xantoxis@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      24
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      If someone told Trump about this guy 4 years from now, he’d be bragging about how there were dudes doing long jailtime for him, because that’s how great he is. Getting Biggs out of prison would mean less bragging rights. He literally has an incentive to keep him in there.

    • qyron@sopuli.xyz
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      6
      ·
      edit-2
      1 year ago

      We have it here as well but it isn’t a free for all. The President receives a list of proposed pardons that have to be vetted one by one by a legal team. Certain offenses are not eligible and only sentences below a given number of years may be pardoned.

      It’s not like the man can hand out pardons on a whim.

      How does it work in the US?

      • CosmicTurtle@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        11
        ·
        edit-2
        1 year ago

        How does it work in the US?

        Generally, the pardon power is meant to be a check on the legislative and judicial branch, and thus it is designed to be this powerful.

        Obama used his pardon power to free individuals who were nonviolent drug offenders who got sentenced to years often for simple possession. This doesn’t mean that he didn’t use a slew of lawyers to find these cases. He very much did. But he could, literally, go through a roster of inmates and just pick random people to pardon.

        Trump, if reelected, will likely pardon himself and it will need to go through the courts to see if that’s even feasible. Given the current nature of our highest court, it likely will be found constitutional.

        • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          11
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          1 year ago

          Given the current nature of our highest court, it likely will be found constitutional.

          Pretty much. From the strict text reading there is nothing about it.

          and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

          Justice Thompson will get a new boat from a GOP aligned group so at least so it isn’t all bad. Sure it is travesty of the justice and breaks the entire concept of no one being above or below the law but when has that stopped the Robert’s court before?

      • xantoxis@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        Nobody knows, including the president. Trump thought he could pardon himself. There aren’t any restrictions other than it must be a crime with federal jurisdiction, the only jurisdiction over which the president has direct power. He can even pardon people in advance.

      • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        1 year ago

        It is very open for abuse but historically hasn’t been abused that much. Seems like the states are moving towards making it less powerful.

        • CileTheSane@lemmy.ca
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          14
          ·
          1 year ago

          The US seems to work on “I pinky swear not to abuse this” and then is shocked when that turns out poorly.

          • jcit878@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            3
            ·
            1 year ago

            sometimes when these systems are designed, the designers, simply didnt contemplate the crazy shit people will try that are within the systems legal bounds. for example no-one would have ever thought a prime minister would secretly swear himself into multiple minister portfolios even behind his own cabinets back, but thats exactly what the former PM of australia did (and now calls into question the things he signed off on in secret at the time).

          • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            You need a balance. You can’t have a government that can’t respond/change and you can’t have a government where whomever won the last election is now dictator whose whim is law.

            A lot of this stuff was ripe for abuse since the beginning but it was only rarely abused so everyone just left it. Kinda how Vietnam war wasnt declared but went on for like a decade. The potential for that abuse of power was there since the founding days but wasn’t abused until much later.

            As I said the states seem like they are moving away from it being an unchecked power so maybe one day there will be a constitutional amendment.

  • Hazdaz@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    23
    ·
    1 year ago

    If there weren’t a million reasons to not vote for Trump already, keeping this POS behind bars is just one more to add to the pile.

  • Jaysyn@kbin.social
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    23
    ·
    1 year ago

    Trump could have pardoned him on January 7th.

    Trump doesn’t give a shit about them.

    Also, Trump is about to get removed from the ballot in several states.

    • Maeve@kbin.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      17
      ·
      1 year ago

      “Also, Trump is about to get removed from the ballot in several states.”

      I hope you’re correct.

  • books@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    20
    ·
    1 year ago

    Yeah, you served your purpose and you failed… enjoy prison.

    Thoughts and prayers

  • Surp@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    20
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    1 year ago

    Lol trump only cares about himself this dudes in for a wild ride. Don’t drop the soap my man.

  • Furbag@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    18
    ·
    1 year ago

    lmao, has this guy ever heard Trump’s opinion on losers? Don’t expect a pardon any time soon, bucko.

  • CeruleanRuin@lemmings.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    18
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    1 year ago

    I’m guessing, because he’s clearly a moron, that he doesn’t realize that former presidents don’t have pardoning power.

    • SkyezOpen@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      9
      ·
      1 year ago

      Depends how brain damaged you assume this guy is, but he either thinks trump will win in 24 or that trump is secretly the actual for real president. Probably the former but I wouldn’t bet on it.