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Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons to Anthony Fauci, Liz Cheney, Mark Milley and members of his own family shortly before handing over the presidency to Donald Trump, who has vowed to retaliate against political enemies.
The outgoing president’s latest move to protect high-profile individuals and family members from possible future prosecution comes after Biden he made extensive use of his pardon powers ahead of his departure from the White House.
Trump allies, including Steve Bannon, his former strategist, and Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene have called for Fauci, the president’s former chief medical adviser, to be prosecuted for his role in overseeing the US response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The future president himself re-promoted an image on social media of Fauci wearing an orange jumpsuit, along with other political opponents.
Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has a long history of hostility with him Trumpwarning before last year’s elections that he is a “fascist to the core”.
Milley said Monday that he and his family were “deeply grateful” for Biden’s action, adding, “After 43 years of faithful service to our nation in uniform, protecting and defending the Constitution, I do not want to spend the remaining time that the Lord allows me fighting those who could unfairly seek retribution for perceived insults.”
Cheney, a prominent Republican, has campaigned for Kamala Harris for the past year presidential elections and served as vice chairman of the congressional investigation into the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Last year, Trump re-promoted a post on his Truth Social page in which he accused Cheney of treason and said, “BRING BACK THE TRUTH IF YOU WANT COURTS-MARTIAL TELEVISION.”
Biden said he was pardoning members of Congress and staff who worked on the committee, as well as the police officers who witnessed it.
“It is alarming that public officials were exposed to constant threats and intimidation for the faithful performance of their duties,” he said.
Later in the morning, Biden also issued preemptive pardons to his sister Valerie Biden Owens and her husband John Owens, his brothers James Biden and Francis Biden, and James’ wife Sara Jones Biden.
“My family has been subjected to relentless attacks and threats, motivated solely by the desire to hurt me — the worst kind of partisan politics,” the outgoing president said moments before Trump was sworn in. “Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will stop.”
Last year, the outgoing president issued a pardon for his son, Hunter Biden, to spare him possible prison terms related to federal gun and tax convictions, as well as any other potential crimes he may have been under investigation for since 2014.
Trump is expected to begin his second term by pardoning some of the rioters convicted in connection with the attack on the Capitol as they tried to stop the confirmation of Biden’s victory.
The new president has vowed to shake up US law enforcement agencies, including the Justice Department and the FBI, raising concerns that he will try to use them more proactively to target his political and personal opponents.
In recent years, Trump has frequently criticized what he described as “weaponizing” the Justice Department against him. He faced federal charges for mishandling classified documents and his role in an attempt to overturn election results.