Quote (Black XistenZ @ 22 Aug 2018 00:22)
wouldnt he also be rated the worst president in history if he got impeached and then actually removed from office? wouldnt his family name also be tarnished for a long time in that case?
and wouldnt exiting the office in disgrace still be better than spending the rest of his life in prison?
I dont think there's any chance it ever comes this far, but yeah...
Yes to the first two questions, but a self-pardon would be even worse than just an impeachment/conviction scenario, which is way more likely than a self-pardon but admittedly unlikely in of itself. Like you said, all of this unlikely in the first place.
As for the third question, I'd argue that the historical damage and disgrace of a self-pardon/impeachment-conviction removal is worse than life in prison at his age, but Trump and perhaps most folks would probably disagree with that.
Disgracing country in such a manner is among the worst offenses anyone can commit in my book. I'd rather spend my life in prison than be remembered as one of the most corrupt figures in US history, but I admit staring down a life sentence is probably pretty damn tough when actually faced with it.