A presidential pardon—whether delivered in the light of day or from behind closed doors—demands acceptance. If the president signs off on a posthumous pardon for Epstein, you’re expected to accept it. If those connected to the case receive pardons as well, the public is told to accept that too.

Everyone has families who care about them; that’s the line often trotted out, as if personal love erases everything. When authorities issue a pardon, the implication is clear: you don’t have to like it, but you have to live with it. Was it all a case of malicious prosecution? Political payback? No one can say for sure—and perhaps, in this climate, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is acceptance, forced or otherwise.

Rest assured, the next president likely has his own stack of pardons, ready and waiting in a drawer—no explanations owed, no public debate required.