Notable reporting on the new "wild west" of clemency in Prez Trump's second term

In this post around Thanksgiving last year at the Sentencing Matters Substack, I made the case for chief executives to make more and more regular use of their clemency powers.   And I had this musing in that commentary:  "I think it worthwhile to imagine how possible actions by Trump to prioritize use of his clemency powers early in his second term might portend a new clemency tradition — and not just for Presidents, but also for Governors — of chief executives exercising this historic constitutional power early and regularly, rather than in just a lame-duck frenzy."  Not long thereafter, of course, both out-going Prez Biden and in-coming Prez Trump made greater use of their clemency powers than I could have predicted or guessed.

My prior piece came to mind as I read this notable new Wall Street Journal article fully headlined "The Wild West of Presidential Pardons in Trump’s Second Term: Trump sets off scramble among those seeking clemency to use lobbyists, personal connections to president."  I recommend the article in full, and here are excerpts:

Trump has turned the pardon process into the Wild West. What had long been a sober legal proceeding done by career officials in the Justice Department increasingly resides in the White House and depends on the whims of a president who is receptive to arguments of political persecution.

The president, according to a senior administration official, has taken a particular interest in the work of Alice Johnson, the pardon czar he appointed earlier this year. He regularly asks her, “Where are my pardons?” The White House is expected to announce a substantial batch of pardons in the coming weeks, the official said.

Pardon seekers are shelling out to hire lawyers and lobbyists who tout access to those in the president’s inner circle. Others seek to make their case to Trump or his inner circle at places they frequent, showing up at events at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, GOP hangouts on Capitol Hill and a collegiate wrestling match. And still others connect with conservative influencers, pitching their case on shows Trump consumes.

The president is listening. Several of the pardons he has issued so far followed advocacy by people close to him. Some lawyers with close ties to Trump, including the president’s former lawyers Jesse Binnall and Jim Trusty, have helped clients pursue pardons, people familiar with the matter said. Others who have received pardons got boosts from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and former GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, a longtime ally of Trump’s....

Pardon seekers have found success drawing parallels between their cases and those of Trump, a felon who has railed against his own experience with the justice system. “You need someone who can get in front of the president for five minutes and make a pitch of how a person was wrongfully targeted,” said Eric Rosen, a defense attorney who has clients seeking pardons.

A senior administration official said that pardon applicants undergo “extensive vetting,” conducted by the pardon czar’s office, the White House Counsel’s Office and the Justice Department. The administration’s priority, the official said, is to pardon those who were the targets of “unfair justice” or those deserving of a second chance.

Some prior recent related posts covering only a portion of Prez Trump's clemency actions:

• Prez Trump grants 14 commutations and blanket pardons to all other Jan 6 defendants 
• Prez Trump formally announces Alice Marie Johnson will be his "pardon czar" 
• Wide praise, but uncertain plans, for Prez Trump's new pardon czar
• Prez Trump continuing to make robust use of his clemency pen (for white-collar offenders) 
• Prez Trump keeps using his clemency pen, building quite the clemency record
• "Lawyers Are Quoting $1 Million in Fees to Get Pardons to Trump"