In an unprecedented move in his final hours in the White House, US President Joe Biden granted preemptive pardons to former COVID-19 adviser Anthony Fauci and Gen. Mark Milley (retd.) on Monday in order to protect them from “politically motivated prosecutions” under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.
Biden also granted similar pardons to members, staff, and witnesses of a US House committee looking into the violent January 6, 2021 US Capitol attack by Trump’s supporters.
“These public servants have served our nation with honour and distinction, and do not deserve to be the targets of unjustified and politically motivated prosecutions.
“These are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing,” Biden said in a statement.
Trump, who will take office on Monday, has threatened some of his political rivals with criminal charges and made several promises of “retribution.”
Fauci became the national spokesperson for the fight against the COVID epidemic, but during Trump’s first term, his blunt views on the illness caused him to clash with Republicans.
Additionally, it made the scientist a hate figure for many conservatives, such as Elon Musk, Trump’s supporter and the richest man in the world, who has advocated for Fauci’s prosecution on numerous occasions.
Milley, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during Trump’s first term, told journalist Bob Woodward that Trump was “the most dangerous person to this country” and “fascist to the core,” which infuriated Trump.
In order to reassure Beijing that the United States was still “stable” and had no plans to strike China, Milley also disclosed that he had made a covert phone conversation to his Chinese colleague following the Capitol attack.
“In times gone by, the punishment would have been death!” Trump later wrote for Milley on his Truth Social network.
Among those on the January 6 committee is Liz Cheney, a former Republican congresswoman and the daughter of former vice president Dick Cheney, who is very critical of Trump.
“Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families,” wrote Biden.
According to the Democrat, the pardons “should not be construed as an admission of guilt for any offence, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an acknowledgement that any individual engaged in any wrongdoing.”
Trump, who was criminally charged for crimes such as attempting to sabotage the 2020 election, has frequently lamented that he was the victim of “lawfare” during the Biden administration.