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Culture War Roundup for the week of December 2, 2024

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How was it a defect button? The president has the power to pardon crimes. This is a known power.

Both options in the prisoner’s dilemma are known, too.

Pardoning your kids is eroding a common good to benefit yourself and yours.

But I think it's fair to say that it's highly questionable for the President to use that power to prevent his loved ones from facing legal repercussions for misconduct. If the presumption that it's illegitimate for a Republican President to do such a thing, but legitimate for a Democrat President to do it, that is a defection.

Where did I say it would be illegitimate for a Republican to do the same thing?

You said that a President pardoning someone isn't hitting a defect button.

If two teams have agreed not to use the power of Presidential pardons for illegitimate purposes, then if one team goes ahead and uses them for that purpose, that team is defecting.

When was this agreement ever a thing?

Every time Trump has been accused of nepotism (e.g. the Jared Kushner appointment) or of abusing the power of Presidential pardons for nepotistic reasons (Kushner's father), Democrats are implicitly appealing to said agreement.