Despite the backlash of his sweeping 11-year pardon of son Hunter Biden’s federal crimes, President Joe Biden isn’t done giving out pardons.
According to new reports White House officials are considering issuing preemptive pardons to controversial figures who are President-elect Donald Trump’s political rivals — pardons that would protect them from potential investigation, arrest, and prosecution under a new Department of Justice, according to senior Democrats familiar with the discussions.
The deliberations, led by White House counsel Ed Siskel and chief of staff Jeff Zients, focus on three Trump rivals specifically: Former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, Sen.-elect Adam Schiff, and Dr. Anthony Fauci.
“This is no hypothetical threat,” Rep. Brendan Boyle claimed in a statement. “The time for cautious restraint is over. We must act with urgency to push back against these threats and prevent Trump from abusing his power.”
The pardon discussions intensified after Trump named Kash Patel as his FBI director nominee. Democrats worry about potential investigations, with Schiff facing scrutiny over Russian claims that dogged Trump’s entire first term but turned out to be false, and for Fauci’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic and his testimonies under oath.
“I would urge the president not to do that,” Schiff told Politico about a preemptive pardon. “I think it would seem defensive and unnecessary.”
Sen. Ed Markey supports the idea, citing Gerald Ford’s pardon of Richard Nixon.
“If it’s clear by January 19 that [revenge] is his intention, then I would recommend to President Biden that he provide those preemptive pardons to people, because that’s really what our country is going to need next year,” Markey said in an interview with local station WGBH.
Trump has previously fumed Cheney “should go to Jail along with the rest of the Unselect Committee!” However, he recently downplayed retribution plans, calling for unity and telling Fox News host Sean Hannity: “The country doesn’t want that.”
White House officials express concern that even investigations without charges could burden targets with legal fees — something Republican criticized the Biden Justice Department over the last four years.
The discussions follow Biden’s controversial, near-unprecedented sweeping pardon of his son Hunter, covering all potential crimes from when Biden was vice president in 2014 until now.
White House officials haven’t expressed concern over the legality of the pardons, only that they could suggest wrongdoing and face rejection from recipients.
“The beneficiaries know nothing,” one senior Democrat told Politico.