Religion & Politics

In the aftermath of the siege on the U.S. Capitol, President Donald Trump started having more conversations with his aides and lawyers about the extent of his presidential pardon power. Now, there are questions about whether or not Trump could pardon himself or others in the wake of the latest calls for him to be held accountable for the violence that ensued.

Legal experts and law observers have revealed timing will be an important factor in the outcome, according to Law & Crime. Many have pointed to Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution as they noted that it states: "The President … shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment."

"We're in! Let's go, keep it moving, baby!" shouted Derrick Evans, a newly elected Republican member of West Virginia's House of Delegates, as he is seen pushing his way through the rotunda at the U.S. Capitol with a throng of violent Trump supporters in a video live-streamed on Facebook.

This article first appeared in Salon.

On Saturday, POLITICO reported that Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Josh Hawley (R-MO), two of the most vocal lawmakers behind the effort to overturn the presidential election, are struggling to fend off the backlash for their actions in light of the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol that left five people dead.

"After rioters stormed the Capitol in a bid to halt certification of Joe Biden's election, Hawley and Cruz are facing immediate consequences," reported Marianne Levine, Holly Otterbein, and Burgess Everett. "Hawley's political patron, former Sen. John Danforth (R-Mo.), turned on him, calling his support the 'biggest mistake I've ever made.' His top donor, David Humphreys, said he should be censured. Hawley's book publisher dropped him, interfering with a key element of many presidential campaigns. Cruz, meanwhile, is facing a redux of the backlash he received for egging on a shutdown in 2013 over a failed effort to defund Obamacare."

There's only 11 days left in the Trump presidency and the walls are rapidly caving in. Following Trump supporters' breach of the U.S. Capitol, nearly a dozen of the president's administration members resigned and now lawmakers are actively drawing up articles of impeachment—again.

To make matters worse, on Friday evening, the disgraced president has been silenced by the world's largest social media platforms. He's lost the presidency, and more importantly, his ability to reach his massive base. Insiders have revealed that President Donald Trump is sequestered inside of the White House, only opting to speak with a select number of people who have typically been supportive of his governing and actions.

On Saturday, The Washington Post reported that the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol has caused historically conservative corporations and trade groups to re-examine their financial relationship with President Donald Trump's administration — and with the Republican Party as a whole.

"Following the attack on the Capitol, advisers crucial to the president's economic policies tried to distance themselves from the Trump-induced mayhem," reported Todd C. Frankel, Jeff Stein, Jena McGregor, and Jonathan O'Connell. "Some resigned, such as former chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, who was serving as envoy to Northern Ireland, explaining to CNBC that, 'we signed up for lower taxes and less regulation.' Companies considered cutting off the money spigot to the politicians seen as fomenting the worst of it. Firms that did business with the Trump family were reexamining the cost of being associated with a historic insurrection."

On Saturday, Politico reported that some House Republicans are pointing fingers at House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) for bungling the response to the pro-Trump insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday.

"As lawmakers have started to fully digest the deadly turn of events that unfolded Wednesday, a cohort of House Republicans have begun to direct their outrage and frustration at their own leaders, according to interviews with nearly two dozen GOP members and aides," reported Melanie Zanona and Olivia Beavers. "Privately, they say McCarthy and Scalise failed to show leadership in a time of crisis and should have done more to call out Trump for his role in the riots that left five people dead."

According to documents obtained by the Daily Beast, a presentation being given by Fox News executives to advertisers reveals they are attempting to prevent any potential advertiser loss.

The network has already been buffeted by never regaining major advertisers for popular late-night host Tucker Carlson. According to the report, the network is attempting to reassure clients that Bartiromo -- whose main expertise is reporting on Wall Street -- is still a serious journalist.

According to a report from the Daily Beast's Russian media observer, Julia Davis, the Kremlin -- and Vladimir Putin in particular -- could not have been more pleased after seeing supporters of Donald Trump storm the halls of Congress and send U.S. lawmakers fleeing for their lives.

As the world watched in both fascination and horror as rightwing extremists breached the security at the U.S. Capitol leaving a trail of destruction and disrupting the certification of former Vice President Joe Biden as the new president, Russian state media hyped up the attack with one journalist reporting, "While the Democrats gained control of Congress and the Senate, that doesn't mean they can control the minds of the people. January 6, 2021 is forever written into the American political calendar. For some, it's a dark date they will try to forget. For others, it's a day to remember—or perhaps to repeat."

Fox & Friends host Steve Doocy on Friday expressed bewilderment that there wasn't a magical "button" in the U.S. Capitol building that could be pressed to stop rioters in their tracks.

While discussing Trump supporters' efforts to violently block Congress from certifying President-elect Joe Biden's victory, Doocy said he was surprised that the rioters were able to get as far as they did.