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Description
This report provides a general overview of the pardon power and briefly addresses a few frequently-asked legal questions concerning its scope and application, such as: whether the President can issue a "prospective pardon, pardon himself or issue "secret" pardons, whether the acceptance of a pardon is an admission of guilt, and whether Congress can regulate the President's pardon power.
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This report provides a general overview of the pardon power and briefly addresses a few frequently-asked legal questions concerning its scope and application, such as: whether the President can issue a "prospective pardon, pardon himself or issue "secret" pardons, whether the acceptance of a pardon is an admission of guilt, and whether Congress can regulate the President's pardon power.
This report is part of the following collection of related materials.
Congressional Research Service Reports
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is the public policy research arm of Congress. This legislative branch agency works exclusively for Members of Congress, their committees and their staff. This collection includes CRS reports from the mid-1960's through 2018—covering a variety of topics from agriculture to foreign policy to welfare.
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service.Presidential Pardons: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs),
report,
August 28, 2017;
Washington D.C..
(https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1020814/:
accessed April 22, 2024),
University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu;
crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.