Washington President Joe Biden granted preemptive pardons early Monday to a number of politicians and officials who had been the object of retaliatory threats from incoming President-elect Donald Trump, as well as to many members of his family, only hours before the conclusion of his four-year tenure.
The Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol, its members and staff, retired Gen. Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan Police officers who testified before the committee were all pardoned by Biden.
I support the rule of law and have faith that our legal system’s power will finally triumph over politics. However, given the extraordinary circumstances, I cannot honestly do nothing. Biden said in a statement Monday morning that politically motivated and baseless investigations have a devastating effect on the lives, safety, and financial stability of the targeted individuals and their families.
“The mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage reputations and finances, even when individuals have done nothing wrong and have done the right thing and will ultimately be exonerated,” Biden said.
Trump claimed that Rep. Bennie Thompson and former Rep. Liz Cheney lied and ought to be imprisoned just last month in an interview with Kristen Welker on NBC News Meet the Press. The commission that looked into the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, was led by a Republican from Wyoming and a Democrat from Mississippi.
The Department of Justice claims that on that day, a violent mob of Trump fans marched to the Capitol at Trump’s insistence, attacked more than 140 police officers, and damaged the building to the tune of up to $2.8 million.
Trump has called individuals convicted of the attack or who entered guilty pleas “hostages, patriots, and warriors” and pledged to pardon them. According to the most recent Department of Justice numbers, about 1,580 people have been charged.
One of the law enforcement officers who testified before the Jan. 6 committee was former U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, who posted on X Sunday that the law and order guy is going to pardon people who attacked the police. That day, I was attacked by almost 40 rioters in all.
During the first Trump administration and into Biden’s tenure in the White House, Milley served as the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The retired general has been known to call Trump a fascist and a potential tyrant.
Trump’s anger has been directed at Milley because of his instructions, which include sending the military to crush demonstrators in D.C. amid a wave of countrywide protests following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Trump has demanded that Milley face political retaliation. Journalist Bob Woodward claims that since his retirement, the former general has been inundated with death threats.
For years, congressional Republicans have also threatened and investigated Fauci, who served as the United States’ top medical expert during the COVID-19 outbreak.
As early as 2020, Trump began using derogatory language and partisan assaults against Fauci, labeling the former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases a complete failure.
The White House announced Biden’s preemptive pardons of his siblings and their wives only minutes before Trump took the oath of office.
Among them are Francis W. Biden, John T. Owens, Valerie Biden Owens, James B. Biden, and Sara Jones Biden.
My family has been the target of constant threats and attacks, driven only by party politics and a desire to harm me. In a statement, Biden stated, “Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end.”
According to Biden, the pardons should not be interpreted as an admission of guilt for any offense, nor should they be interpreted as a recognition that they committed any wrongdoing.
“The preemptive pardons for the Biden Crime Family serve as a confession of their corruption as they sold out the American people to enrich themselves,” said Rep. James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.
The GOP-led panel claimed that Comer’s committee’s probe of Biden would result in his impeachment, but this never happened.
According to Comer, his committee’s probe will go down as one of the most fruitful ones that Congress has ever carried out.
