US President Joe Biden on Monday issued pre-emptive pardons to former Covid-19 advisor Anthony Fauci and retired general Mark Milley to shield them from “politically motivated prosecutions” under the Trump administration.
In an extraordinary move in his last hours in the White House, Biden gave similar pardons to members, staff and witnesses of a US House committee probing the violent January 6, 2021 US Capitol attack by Donald Trump’s supporters.
“These public servants have served our nation with honor and distinction and do not deserve to be the targets of unjustified and politically motivated prosecutions,” Biden said in a statement.
“These are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing.”
Trump, who will be sworn in on Monday, has repeatedly promised “retribution” against his political opponents and threatened some with criminal prosecution.
Fauci became the face of the country’s fight against the Covid pandemic, but his straight-talking takes on the disease in Trump’s first term brought him into conflict with the Republican.
It also turned the scientist into a hate figure for many on the right, including Elon Musk, Trump’s ally and the world’s richest man, who repeatedly called for Fauci to be prosecuted.
Trump was enraged after Milley, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during Trump’s first term, told journalist Bob Woodward that Trump was “fascist to the core” and “the most dangerous person to this country.”
Milley also revealed that he had secretly called his Chinese counterpart after the Capitol attack to reassure Beijing that the United States remained “stable” and had no intention to attack China.
Trump subsequently wrote on his Truth Social network that “in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!” for Milley.
The members of the January 6 committee meanwhile include fierce Trump critic and former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney, the daughter of former vice-president Dick Cheney.
“Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families,” wrote Biden.
The Democrat added that the 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.”
Trump has repeatedly complained of being the victim of “lawfare” under the Biden administration, after being criminally prosecuted for offenses including trying to subvert the 2020 election.
