Jared Kushner, second from left, and Ivanka Trump, right, arrive with their children at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Sept. 22, 2020.Photo by MANDEL NGAN /AFP via Getty Images
Neither Trump nor his children have been charged with crimes, and they are not known to be under federal investigation.
But the question of a presidential self-pardon has become more urgent and controversial since the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol by the presidents supporters. Some aides think Trump could face criminal liability for riling the crowd, some members of which eventually rioted.
Others think a self-pardon, never attempted by a president, would be of dubious constitutionality, anger Senate Republicans preparing to serve as key jurors at Trumps impeachment trial and amount to an admission of guilt that could be used against Trump in potential civil litigation related to the Capitol attack.
White House spokesman Judd Deere declined to comment, saying his office does not discuss pardons.
People familiar with the discussions said many of the pardons and commutations Trump is expected to issue in his final days will be uncontroversial.
Rudy Giuliani, the personal attorney to President Donald Trump, speaks at a news conference about the 2020 election results, in Washington on November 19, 2020.Photo by Jonathan Ernst / REUTERS/
But it remains unknown whether he will grant clemency to Steve Bannon, his former campaign adviser, who was charged last year with defrauding donors to a private fundraising effort for construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, or his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, whose consulting business has come under scrutiny as part of an investigation that led to charges against two of his associates.
The news of Trumps intention to make a slew of final pardons and commutations in the coming days was first reported by CNN.
