Fact check: Senate Democrats have introduced a new bill to explicitly ban President Donald Trump and any sitting president from par…

Verdict: verified — Trust Score 85/100

The post accurately states that Senate Democrats have introduced a new bill to ban President Trump and any sitting president from pardoning themselves for federal crimes. This legislative effort, known as the 'Drain the Slush Fund Act' or a constitutional amendment to reform pardon power, was introduced in late 2025 and early 2026. The post also correctly references President Trump's pardons of approximately 1,500 January 6 rioters in January 2026 and Changpeng Zhao in October 2025. confirmed by 4 sources.

Platform
threads
Source author
tahna100 — see all fact-checks of this account
Original post
https://www.threads.com/@tahna100/post/Da9bQiLnMU1?xmt=AQG0NXUyG6MCcR-6X1oRzA-b5sOrqAlPxEhM_0j1JcZEeOxsMjDhEqLe5ZYsrGwas8dSwxg
Verified on
July 19, 2026
Verification ID
J-7hr-fUOhiFCFaE4CuPpQ

Original content reviewed

Platform: THREADS Author: @tahna100 --- Caption/Description --- Senate Democrats have introduced a new bill to explicitly ban President Donald Trump and any sitting president from pardoning themselves for federal crimes, particularly corruption charges. The legislation aims to close a legal loophole and ensure that no president can use executive pardon power to avoid prosecution or jail time. This proposal emerged after Trump issued controversial pardons for around 1,500 January 6 rioters, crypto boss Changpeng Zhao, and other figures, which Democrats say represents an alarming abuse of presidential power. The bill would also prohibit presidents from pardoning relatives, high-ranking officials, or anyone in exchange for personal financial or political benefits. While the proposal reflects growing Democratic concern about Trump's pardon abuse, it faces steep legislative hurdles since amending presidential pardon powers would likely require a constitutional amendment needing two-thirds approval in Congress and ratification by three-quarters of states. Despite unlikely passage, the bill serves as a symbolic statement against what lawmakers call a "breaking point" in presidential pardon power misuse. ---VERIFICATION_SUMMARY--- Platform: THREADS Author: @tahna100 Person shown on screen (from video analysis): Donald Trump What the video shows (from video analysis): The video shows a split screen. The main part of the screen shows a large group of people, likely politicians or officials, in what appears to be a legislative chamber, with some standing and others seated, many holding up phones to record. In the bottom left, a circular inset shows a close-up of Donald Trump speaking, wearing a suit and a red tie. The text overlay on the bottom of the screen reads, "SENATE DEMOCRATS INTRODUCE NEW BILL TO BAN TRUMP FROM PARDONING HIMSELF." --- HOW TO VERIFY THIS (provenance-first) --- 1. SOURCE-TRACE: take the MOST DISTINCTIVE, verbatim details above — exact unusual

Claims analyzed (4)

  1. verified: Senate Democrats have introduced a new bill to explicitly ban President Donald Trump and any sitting president from pardoning themselves for federal crimes.
    Multiple sources confirm that in late 2025 and early 2026, Senate Democrats introduced legislation, such as the 'Drain the Slush Fund Act' and a proposed constitutional amendment, aimed at curbing presidential pardon powers, including banning self-pardons and pardons for corrupt purposes.
  2. verified: The legislation aims to close a legal loophole and ensure that no president can use executive pardon power to avoid prosecution or jail time.
    News reports indicate that the proposed legislation, including a constitutional amendment, is intended to reform the pardon power by banning self-pardons and blocking pardons used for personal or financial interests, thereby preventing presidents from using this power to avoid prosecution.
  3. verified: This proposal emerged after Trump issued controversial pardons for around 1,500 January 6 rioters.
    President Trump issued pardons for approximately 1,500 individuals involved in the January 6 Capitol riot on his first day in office in January 2026. This action has been widely reported and is cited as a reason for the new legislative efforts to reform pardon powers.
  4. verified: Trump issued controversial pardons for crypto boss Changpeng Zhao.
    President Donald Trump pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, in October 2025. Zhao had pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an anti-money laundering program. This pardon was widely reported by major news outlets.

Sources consulted (11)

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