Section 1. The power of the President to pardon shall cease at noon on the day before the next Presidential election.
Section 2. The power of the President to pardon shall apply only to a specific offense for which the guilty party was sentenced at least five years before the date of the pardon, and for which the guilty party has expressed remorse in writing, detailing the extent of the crime.
Section 3. The power of the President to pardon shall not extend to an offense committed during the President’s term in office, or by the President, or by a member of the President’s family or administration, or by anyone with any personal, financial, or business relationship with the President.
Update:
Barney Frank (D-MA) proposed an amendment about pardons in 2001, after Clinton and the Marc Rich debacle. Here it is:
‘SECTION 1. The power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States shall not be exercised between October 1 of a year in which a Presidential election occurs and January 21 of the year following; except that after October 1 in said year a President may delay the execution of a sentence of death until January 25 of the year following.
‘SECTION 2. All pardons and reprieves must be announced publicly at the time they are granted.’.
So he thought the electorate needed a month to absorb any problematic pardons, instead of a day (!). Obviously I thought the speed of the news cycle has changed. Several commenters suggested two weeks.
Several commenters also suggested provisions to allow for stays of execution, as Rep Frank did, and for truly innocent people to demonstrate their innocence rather than write a false confession.
Constitutional amendments are impossible extremely difficult to enact, but the Trump stench is so strong the next Congress may well consider it. My Rep (Jeff Duncan, R-SC) is a horror show, but others should be interested. Let them know!