I beg my pardon? Questions raised over Trump’s right to absolve himself

Conjecture is growing in Washington over whether outgoing president Donald Trump will try to pardon himself over several investigations (Patrick Semansky/AP)

President Donald Trump has declared he has the “absolute right” to issue a pardon to himself, yet the law is much murkier than his confidence suggests.

No president has attempted to pardon himself while in office, so if Mr Trump tries to do so in the next six weeks, he will be venturing into legally untested territory without clear guidance from the Constitution or from judges.