Political | Process

Joe Biden on Monday pardoned Dr. Anthony Fauci, retired Gen. Mark Milley and members of the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol

Clemency for Gen. Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci and members of Congress who served on the committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, was announced early Monday morning. Later, minutes before Trump was to be inaugurated as the nation’s 47th president, Biden also issued pardons for members of his family: his brothers James and Frank, his sister Valerie, and their respective spouses.

But they also protect his close family members and potentially establish a precedent the new president will use to protect his own allies from criminal prosecution.

“My family has been subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me—the worst kind of partisan politics. Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,” Biden said in a statement released as the inauguration ceremony was underway at the US Capitol.

Biden’s extraordinary decision to announce pardons for multiple members of his family in his final minutes as president was fueled, in part, by Trump’s public vow to appoint a special prosecutor to “go after” Biden and his family, according to a source familiar with his thinking.

A number of Biden’s family members had testified before a House Oversight panel looking into accusations of influence peddling.

The stunning move came as Biden was already inside the US Capitol preparing to watch Trump take his oath of office, after the two presidents joined together with their spouses for a traditional tea reception in the White House Blue Room.

“Even when individuals have done nothing wrong and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage their reputations and finances,” the outgoing president said.

A statement earlier in the day said Biden “in good conscience” could not stand aside with the threat of reprisals by the incoming president against his adversaries.

“These are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing,” Biden wrote in a statement about the initial batch of pardons, issued hours before he was set to welcome Trump to the White House for tea before attending his swearing-in. “Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety and financial security of targeted individuals and their families.”

In addition to members of his family, Biden issued a commutation to Leonard Peltier, an indigenous activist who was convicted in the killing of two FBI agents in 1975. The commutation says the 80-year-old Peltier will serve the remainder of his sentence at home.