As the presidential transition moves forward, a significant issue for American democracy and the rule of law is whether Donald Trump will deploy the resources of the federal government — including the Department of Justice — to pursue retribution against his political opponents. This includes retribution through criminal investigations and potentially indictments, as Trump repeatedly promised during his campaign.

A second, largely unexamined question is whether President Biden will allow this to happen, or whether he will preempt so-called “revenge” prosecutions through pardons.

WHO IS AT RISK AND FOR WHAT?

Congressional investigations

As my partner Bill Pittard recently wrote, aggressive congressional investigations into Trump’s political opponents are virtually guaranteed during his second term. With both Republican control of both the House and Senate, perceived Trump adversaries are likely to face near-constant investigations from House and Senate committees, disrupting their lives in a myriad of ways.

While politically motivated investigations are nothing new, based on Trump’s public statements and presidential nominations to date, his administration’s approach will likely go further. These probes would expand into personal and political retribution under the guise of........

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