WASHINGTON ― President Joe Biden on Monday issued blanket preemptive pardons for potential targets of President-elect Donald Trump in an unprecedented move to shield some of the incoming president’s top foes from criminal prosecution.
Those issued pardons include retired Gen. Mark Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Anthony Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; and the lawmakers and staffers from the House committee that investigated the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021. Those lawmakers include former GOP Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, Adam Kinzinger of Illinois; and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
“These public servants have served our nation with honor and distinction and do not deserve to be the targets of unjustified and politically motivated prosecutions,” Biden said in a statement.
Trump had called Milley a traitor. He criticized Fauci for the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. And he said members of the Jan. 6 committee should be jailed for investigating him and calling him the central cause of the riot at the Capitol that injured 140 police officers and temporarily halted the counting of Electoral College votes.
None of these individuals have been charged with crimes, but they were believed to be among the targets as Trump promises “retribution” in his second term for his political enemies.
“Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families,” Biden said. “Even when individuals have done nothing wrong − and in fact have done the right thing −and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage reputations and finances.”
The blanket pardons follow Biden’s broadly-worded pardon in December for Hunter Biden, which was made not only to reprieve his son from existing gun and tax felonies but to shield him from potential future charges by Trump’s Justice Department.
Discussions among Biden and top White House officials about preemptive pardons have taken place for weeks. Some Democrats, including Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., pushed for the action ‒ alarmed both by Trump’s repeated past threats to prosecute his political enemies and his recent pick of longtime ally Kash Patel to replace Christopher Wray as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
They note that anyone facing an FBI investigation or federal indictment could be forced to spend significant time and money defending themselves, and where the risk of prison time is real in the event of a conviction.
Yet pre-pardoning people who have not been charged of any crimes raises several legal concerns, legal experts have said. Accepting a pardon carries with it the suggestion of accepting guilt. Others have warned the actions could set a new precedent for pardons, opening the door for Trump to take similar actions.
