Former FBI Director and Trump critic James Comey says that President-elect Joe Biden must consider issuing Trump a pardon once he leaves office. Comey said the move could be a step in uniting and healing the nation, a message that Biden has been reiterating since his campaign. During an interview, Comey made it clear he personally feels Trump should serve jail time however pursuing that is “not in the best interest of the entire nation.”
“Donald Trump belongs in jail.”
Ex-FBI Director @Comey says while he “obviously believes” the president should be in jail, he doesn’t think “pursuing that is in the best interests of the American people”, adding Joe Biden should "consider" pardoning Donald Trump#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/RUghKyq5nW
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) January 13, 2021
The Hill reports:
“I don’t know, he should at least consider it,” Comey said during an interview with BBC Newsnight. “Donald Trump, he’s not a genius, but he might figure out that if he accepts a pardon, that’s an admission of guilt, the United States Supreme Court has said, so I don’t know that he would accept a pardon.”
Legal experts have said it could be difficult to charge Trump with a crime related to last week’s deadly rioting at the Capitol by his supporters that led to the president’s second impeachment on Wednesday. But the president and his company could face scrutiny for possible financial crimes in the Southern District of New York, they have noted.
Earlier this week, Comey, whom Trump fired, said it would be the “greatest punishment he could imagine” for politicians and the media to ignore Trump after he leaves office.
“I think the wiser decision would be not to pursue him,” he added. “But whatever you do, the next president, Joe Biden, should explain it to the American people. Be transparent about why you’re doing what you’re doing.”
In past weeks, Comey had become increasingly critical of Trump’s claims of widespread voter fraud.
