Important Takeaways:
- President Joe Biden sparked fury on his way out the door by issuing preemptive pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci and all nine members of the January 6 Committee.
- The 82-year-old Democrat also used his final moments in the Oval Office to give blanket protection to former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, who Trump has said deserves to be executed.
- Fauci is also accused of lying to Congress about the U.S. sending money to fund gain-of-function research at the laboratory in Wuhan, China, where the virus is thought to have originated and leaked from.
- January 6 panel Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson and former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney were included in the pardon sweep, giving them immunity from any future actions by Trump’s Department of Justice.
- Among the most controversial of all Biden’s pardons so far is the protection of Fauci from federal prosecution. He also got massive backlash for pardoning his own son Hunter from his federal crimes.
- Biden commuted almost 2,500 sentences last week, using his final days in office on a flurry of clemency actions meant to nullify prison terms he deemed too harsh.
- It comes after he issued 39 pardons and commuted another 1,500 sentences in December.
- Biden wrote in a statement on the pardons on Monday morning: ‘Our nation relies on dedicated, selfless public servants every day. They are the lifeblood of our democracy. Yet alarmingly, public servants have been subjected to ongoing threats and intimidation for faithfully discharging their duties.’
- ‘That is why I am exercising my authority under the Constitution to pardon General Mark A. Milley, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the Members of Congress and staff who served on the Select Committee, and the U.S. Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan police officers who testified before the Select Committee,’ the president announced.
- ‘The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that any individual engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense,’ he continued. ‘Our nation owes these public servants a debt of gratitude for their tireless commitment to our country.’
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