Biden’s team is reportedly considering issuing pardons for those who have not even been investigated, let alone charged, for a crime
President Joe Biden is weighing whether to issue sweeping pardons for officials and allies who the White House fears could be unjustly targeted by President-elect Donald Trump’s administration, a preemptive move that would be a novel and risky use of the president’s extraordinary constitutional power.
While the president’s pardon power is absolute, Biden’s use in this fashion would mark a significant expansion of how they are deployed, and some Biden aides fear it could lay the groundwork for an even more drastic usage by Trump. They also worry that issuing pardons would feed into claims by Trump and his allies that the individuals committed acts that necessitated immunity.
It follows Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter – not just for his convictions on federal gun and tax violations, but for any potential federal offence committed over an 11-year period, as the president feared that Trump allies would seek to prosecute his son for other offences. That could serve as a model for other pardons Biden might issue to those who could find themselves in legal jeopardy under Trump.
Trump has talked about “enemies from within” and circulated social media posts that call for the jailing of Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, former Vice President Mike Pence and Sens. Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer. He also zeroed in on former Rep. Liz Cheney, a conservative Republican who campaigned for Harris and helped investigate Jan. 6, and he promoted a social media post that suggested he wanted military tribunals for supposed treason.
“It’s not an ideal situation at all,” Painter said. “We have a whole lot of bad options confronting us at this point.”
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