# Jeffrey Toobin On The Pardon Power

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dishcast-with-andrew-sullivan-1371188/jeffrey-toobin-on-the-pardon-power
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dishcast-with-andrew-sullivan-1371188/jeffrey-toobin-on-the-pardon-power.md
Podcast: [The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dishcast-with-andrew-sullivan-1371188)
Published: 2026-04-17T17:34:47+00:00
Episode link: https://andrewsullivan.substack.com/p/jeffrey-toobin-on-the-pardon-power
Audio file: https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/186998558/302d3397beaa9bb901277e8e5b291715.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-dishcast-with-andrew-sullivan-1371188/episodes/jeffrey-toobin-on-the-pardon-power
Duration seconds: 1623

## Resource

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit andrewsullivan.substack.com Jeff is a lawyer and a contributing opinion writer for the NYT, after a long run at The New Yorker and CNN. He has written many bestselling books, including True Crimes and Misdemeanors , The Oath , The Nine , and Too Close to Call . He appeared on the Dishcast in 2024 to talk lawfare , and in this episode we discuss his latest book, The Pardon : The Politics of Presidential Mercy . We recorded this episode a while back, and we’re posting it this week after Trump promised mass pardons for White House staffers before he leaves office. For two clips of our convo — on Biden’s corrupt pardons, and Trump’s obscene pardons — head to our YouTube page . Other topics: how pardons can be a beautiful act of mercy; the varying powers among the states; Lincoln’s amnesty for Confederate soldiers but not leaders; Andrew Johnson’s pardon for Jefferson Davis; Johnson’s impeachment; the thousand pardons of Rutherford B Hayes; Ford pardoning Nixon; Jimmy Carter pardoning resisters to the Vietnam War; the Willie Horton furlough and ad; HW’s pardons for Iran-Contra; Clinton pardoning his own brother and Marc Rich; Dubya’s refusal to pardon Scooter Libby against Cheney’s wishes; Dubya advising Obama to have a set protocol; Trump pardoning crooks like Charles Kushner and Paul Manafort who could have testified against him; the blanket pardon of January 6ers; Kim Kardashian’s role in Trump’s pardons; the ICE killings in Minneapolis; and the need for presidents with some basic virtue. Browse the Dishcast archive for an episode you might enjoy. Coming up: Greg Lukianoff on free-speech fights, Jerusalem Demsas on the state of the left, Tiffany Jenkins on privacy in a liberal democracy, Adrian Wooldridge on “…

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