Washington DC - President Donald Trump has promised to pardon an assortment of top administration officials before he leaves office in 2029, according to a new report.

"I'll pardon everyone who has come within 200 feet of the Oval," Trump said in a recent White House meeting, triggering laughs from a number of his most senior cabinet members and officials.

Sources who overheard the exchange told the Wall Street Journal that Trump regularly makes such jokes, at one point even telling a visitor that he'd pardon anyone who'd come within 10 feet.

Trump has reportedly told his advisors that he will host a news conference shortly before he leaves office and announce mass, sweeping pardons designed to protect his allies from prosecution for any crimes they may have committed in office.

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Aides and administration officials are apparently scared of facing prosecution for actions they've taken under the current administration. As a result, discussions of pardons have reportedly become routine in the White House.

These fears are worsening as the Trump administration careens to what could be a devastating result for the GOP in November's midterm elections.

Trump has the authority to issue blanket pardons, and would be following in the footsteps of his predecessor, Joe Biden, who issued pardons for top officials and family members before he left office last year.

"The Wall Street Journal should learn to take a joke," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the WSJ. "However, the President’s pardon power is absolute."