"I wouldn't have done it this way," Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) said on NBC Sunday of President Trump's decision to pardon his long-time political ally, controversial former sheriff Joe Arpaio. "And it absolutely should be out of bounds for somebody to use that as some sort of a political wedge," Kasich continued. "It appears as though that's what it, what it was. It's not the way I operate here with the power to be able to give people a second chance. But the president has that power. I don't agree with what he did."
Later in the interview, host Chuck Todd asked Kasich if Trump's apparently political pardon should be subject to congressional scrutiny. "Paul Ryan, like you, criticized the president's decision to pardon," Todd said, noting Congresses past have scrutinized pardon decisions by former presidents and asking, "Should Speaker Ryan instruct the House judiciary committee to scrutinize this pardon?"
Kasich dodged the question, saying Ryan should focus on health-care reform. "Chuck, we've got enough problems," he said. "We have enough problems to start, you know, figuring out why he did this, okay. I don't know." Watch the full interview below. Bonnie Kristian
The Week
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