WALKING IT BACK

Trump Attorney Jay Sekulow: Pardons ‘Not on the Table’

The president said on Saturday he has “complete power to pardon.”

Jay Sekulow, President Donald Trump’s outside legal counsel, said on Sunday that the president is not considering pardons for his family members, staffers, or himself. “We’re not researching the issue because the issue of pardons is not on the table. There’s nothing to pardon from,” Sekulow said on ABC’s This Week. The Washington Post reported on Thursday that the president’s legal team was looking into whether Trump could pardon individuals or himself with regard to the special counsel’s investigation into Russia election meddling and possible collusion. On whether the president has the authority to pardon himself, Sekulow said the issue has not been “adjudicated,” and would need to be decided by the Supreme Court. On Saturday, the president kept the issue alive when he tweeted that he has “the complete power to pardon.” Appearing on Fox News Sunday, incoming communications director Anthony Scaramucci contradicted Sekulow, saying the president “brought that up” but said “he doesn’t have to be pardoned.”