One of the least compelling arguments against President Joe Biden‘s Dec. 1 pardon of his troubled son Hunter is the idea that it will give President-elect Donald Trump an excuse to abuse his own pardon powers to free individuals convicted in relation to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, and could further fuel his thirst for revenge against his enemies. But to believe the idea that Trump—a serial violator of cherished Beltway norms who wantonly and repeatedly exploited his sweeping clemency powers during his first term—needs any excuse to pardon insurrectionists requires you to set aside years of public statements he has made that refer to such individuals as “hostages” and to forget that liberating them has been a Day One promise.
Handwringing about what Trump will do in response to the Hunter Bidenpardon is illustrative of the many ways that Democrats have allowed themselves to be unilaterally abused throughout the Trump era. Don’t provoke the strongman, the argument goes, because you’ll …