Biden Issues Preemptive Pardons on His Final Day: Fauci, Milley, January 6 Committee Members and Five Family Members
On the morning of January 20, 2025, with only hours left in his presidency, President Joe Biden issued a statement in Washington exercising his constitutional pardon authority to grant preemptive pardons to retired General Mark Milley, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; the members of Congress and staff who served on the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol; and the U.S. Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan police officers who testified before the committee. None of them had been charged with any crime.
"Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families," Biden said in the statement. "Even when individuals have done nothing wrong — and in fact have done the right thing — and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage reputations and finances." He added: "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." Our nation, he said, owes these public servants a debt of gratitude.
Minutes before Trump took the oath of office around midday, the White House announced a second set of pardons, for five members of Biden's own family: his brother James B. Biden and James's wife Sara Jones Biden; his sister Valerie Biden Owens and her husband John T. Owens; and his brother Francis W. Biden. Biden said his family had been subjected to "unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me — the worst kind of partisan politics," and that he had no reason to believe the attacks would end.
Fauci said in a statement that he had committed no crime and appreciated the president's action; Milley thanked Biden, saying he did not want to put his family and friends through a potential legal battle. As the Associated Press reported, the pardons for Fauci and Milley were "full and unconditional," extending back to January 1, 2014. Hours later, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States.
Related: Biden Signs Full and Unconditional Pardon for His Son Hunter
(Source: The White House)
Source: The White House
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国国家过敏与传染病研究所前所长 Anthony Fauci 的官方照片。（美国国家过敏与传染病研究所，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons） / Photo: Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, in an official photograph. (NIAID, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
