Robert Pratt, a senior U.S. District Judge of the Southern District of Iowa, made waves earlier this week when he criticized President Donald J. Trump for his pardons.
Pratt reportedly called President Trump “a criminal.”
“It’s not surprising that a criminal like Trump pardons other criminals,” Pratt told The Associated Press Monday.
Pratt added: “But apparently to get a pardon, one has to be either a Republican, a convicted child murderer or a turkey.”
A Clinton appointment, Pratt has served on the bench since 1997.
Trump’s pardons aren’t pretty, but Presidential pardons late in a term rarely are.
According to the Code of Conduct for U.S. Judges, judges should respect and comply with the law and act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
Does calling President Trump, the sitting U.S. President, ” a criminal” despite no known criminal convictions reflect integrity and impartiality of the judiciary?
It certainly seems inappropriate for a federal judge to make a statement. But it’s difficult to imagine the media doing anything other than embracing Pratt’s words when Americans of all stripes should instead be concerned about a judge calling any American a “criminal” who hasn’t been convicted of a crime.
