Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told Newsmax on Tuesday that challenging presidential pardons based on a president's mental incapacity would be unprecedented and could ultimately be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
"If [President] Joe Biden were getting something from Santa this year, I think it might be a stocking full of coal for making this decision," Paxton told "The Chris Salcedo Show."
"Under Article 2, Section 2 of the Constitution, the president has the right to pardon and commute and do other ... certain things, amnesty for certain groups. But there's nothing addressed in the Constitution, as far as I know, or in any other federal law as to what happens if a president is serving, making decisions while he is not competent."
Earlier this month, Biden announced he is commuting the sentences of roughly 1,500 people who were released from prison and placed on home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic and is pardoning 39 Americans convicted of nonviolent crimes. It was the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history.
On Monday, Biden announced that he is commuting the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row, converting their punishments to life imprisonment.
Paxton said the Constitution provides broad powers for presidential pardons but does not outline procedures for assessing the validity of those actions if the president is incapacitated.
"You would think that that president should have already been removed. That has not happened," he said.
The attorney general described the situation as a "case of first impression," meaning no prior judicial ruling directly addresses the issue.
"It would be ultimately up to the U.S. Supreme Court to make that call," Paxton said.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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