I believe in the rule of law also. However, I also believe in national healing. For a long time, I have supported a pardon along the lines of the Truth Commision approach of South Africa.
I oppose pardoning Trump for any and all crimes he may have committed. A pardon must be for specifically stated and admitted to offenses. Even a president should not be absolved of any and all, unstated, misdeeds, without accountability and apology.
I think this approach can still work, although it is greatly complicated by the Supreme Court's granting of almost total immunity to presidents. This has gone to far. Trump's lawyers are even arguing that all his cases, even those offenses committed before he became president and after he became a private citizen again, must be dismissed based on the SC ruling. How does one pardon, when the SC declares immunity by position> A finesse is needed but the Truth Commission still seems the best course for our nation.
I did not object to Ford pardoning Nixon.
I also strongly believe that evil dictators should be encouraged to voluntarily go into exile in another nation, where they are free from extradition and can spend their final years in peace. Yes, horrible crimes go unpunished, but if evil dictators cannot rely upon safely retiring into exile, then they won't leave office and many more horrible crimes will occur as result, possibly including a nasty civil war with many, many dead. Bringing a dictator to justice is not worth eliminating the safety valve of secure exile.
How many would turn down the opportunity to get Putin and the cronies most responsible for the war and atrocities in Ukraine out of office and nowhere near Russia/Ukraine with a more democratic government left in Russia, in return for a safe and soft exile?
We have plenty of departures from 'justice' baked into the current operation of our system of justice. Plea bargaining? The robber who shoots and kills a shopkeeper gets a far more lenient sentence than his get-away driver, who didn't even know he had a gun. Why? Because he was the first to confess and implicate the other guy and our felony-murder laws make both eligible for life in prison or death penalty.
Caroline Ellison was sentenced to 2-years in prison today for her role in the Alameda-FTX multi-billion fraud case. The probation office, with approval of prosecutors, had recommended zero jail time. She strongly cooperated with the prosecution, pointing the finger at Bankman-Fried, who was convicted and sentenced to 25 years. She pleaded guilty. The judge couldn't accept no jail.
But, what is right under our justice and political system? Should she have been spared jail? Is our justice system so dependent upon plea bargaining and pressured guilty pleas that the first finger-pointer should go free and we call that justice? The majority of on-line commenters thought so.k