> But I think if the office of the President is selling pardons it's better they do that with money in the open than with backslapping behind closed doors.
This is, of course, the right thing. The pardon is no longer a relevant power. Scooter Libby's pardon was already too much and that's the one which scared me straight about them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_dilemma
What if we didn't let Presidents sell pardons?