Trump was right to pardon Gen. Flynn

In typical Hearst Connecticut form, Professor Steven Berizzi’s Nov. 29 oped was straight garbage. Time for a reset.

As one of our self-appointed betters, Steven doesn’t like President Trump’s recent pardons, particularly for Gen. Michael Flynn.

Steven wrote “In pardoning Flynn, Trump was attacking the integrity of the FBI, but he did not abuse his constitutional powers because Article II clearly permits presidential pardons to people suspected, accused, even convicted of federal crimes.”

Yes, the President can issue a pardon as stated in Article II and he was absolutely correct to pardon Gen. Flynn.

Back in my May 19th column I wrote the following after the Department of Justice’s filing a Motion to Dismiss in the Flynn case: “Esteemed (liberal) law professor Jonathan Turley strongly supports the Motion to Dismiss, writing how ‘It describes an effort former FBI Director James Comey, (former Dept. FBI Director Andrew) McCabe, and others to skip common protocols at any cost on any grounds.’”

Gen. Flynn was the subject of a perjury trap set an FBI that was politically weaponized by the outgoing Obama administration. Federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies were turned loose against

Gen. Flynn in Banana Republic fashion. James Comey and Andrew McCabe’s FBI had no integrity in this case.

Although Prof. Turley is a liberal Democrat, his fidelity to the rule of law properly supersedes any partisan political concerns.

Here in our state’s largest newspaper chain, op-eds that completely ignore the utter lawlessness that facilitated a debacle that actually does erode the foundations of our republic are dutifully presented as thoughtful analysis.

That mess of a column highlights the dry rot that has permeated both journalism and academia. The measures that the rest of us take to address this decay will determine what America’s future will hold.

Todd Peterson Washington Depot