US President Donald Trump stated on Friday that he was “not above the law” but also reaffirmed his “absolute right” to pardon himself.
The president had formerly said on Monday that he had committed no wrongdoing but had “absolute” legal power to pardon himself.
On departure to a G7 summit in Canada, Trump said he was mulling a raft of pardons, including a posthumous pardon for boxing legend Muhammad Ali, but not for himself.
“I’m not above the law. I never want anybody to be above the law,” Trump said, before adding “yes, I do have an absolute right to pardon myself. But I’ll never have to do it because I didn’t do anything wrong. And everybody knows it.”
“There’s been no collusion,” he said in reference to a major investigation into his campaign’s ties with Russia that has already brought multiple charges and guilty pleas.
“There’s been no obstruction. It’s all a made-up fantasy. It’s a witch hunt.”