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Trump administration reportedly considering pardoning 2020 fake electors

Ed Martin speaks at an event hosted by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, June 13, 2023.
Christopher Habermann
/
Stock Adobe
Ed Martin Jr., pardon attorney in Trump’s Department of Justice, speaks at an event hosted by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, June 13, 2023.

The “fake electors plot” was an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Wisconsin and six other states by certifying that Donald Trump won states he did not. It failed, and those who orchestrated this plot in Wisconsin and elsewhere are being prosecuted. Now Ed Martin Jr., a pardon attorney in Trump’s Department of Justice, is reportedly seeking to pardon them.

But these fake electors broke state laws, not a federal law and the President can only pardon federal crimes. So what would these pardons accomplish?

Dan Friedman, senior reporter with Mother Jones, first reported on the potential pardons last week. He joins Lake Effect’s Sam Woods to break down the plan, the potential backfire and the administration's judicial strategy.

Learn more about the 2020 election and the "fake electors plot" in our podcast Swing State of the Union: Season 1 Episode 8.

Sam is a WUWM producer for Lake Effect.
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