Trump has pardoned over 70 people who tried to help him overturn his 2020 election loss. Some fear it encourages GOP officials to become even bolder with efforts to help Trump subvert future elections, “knowing that if they succeed, they’ll be pardoned.”
I’d love that, but he’s buying their loyalty and everyone knows it - the co-conspirators can do nothing and probably nothing will happen to them, or they can betray him (i.e., not betray the Constitution and country), and risk some kind of retribution through him or his sycophants. They’ll choose option #2.
And beyond that, even if Trump leaves office without a civil war, he will pardon himself the last day, I guarantee it. The Supreme Court with its executive immunity decision already laid the groundwork to reject challenges to even blatantly illegal self-pardons.
I want nothing more than Trump to be punished for any of his crimes. But it certainly won’t happen in his lifetime and probably neither in ours.