Well, folks, here we are—another chapter in the ever-dramatic saga of President Joe Biden’s tenure, and he certainly didn’t disappoint with his parting act. On Monday, just hours before vacating the White House to make way for President-elect Donald Trump, Biden dropped a flurry of preemptive pardons. Among the recipients? Gen. Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and a laundry list of individuals tied to the January 6 Select Committee investigation. Biden’s last-minute move was as polarizing as it was unprecedented, and the reactions are already lighting up the airwaves.
Let’s break this down. Milley, the outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Fauci, America’s favorite (or not-so-favorite) doctor, were both vocal in their gratitude, but their statements had a common thread: fear. Milley pointed to his four decades of service to the Constitution and a desire to avoid “unjust retribution.” Fauci, meanwhile, described the pardon as necessary to protect him and his family from what he characterized as politically motivated threats. Neither man acknowledged any wrongdoing, but the pardons themselves raise an obvious question: If you’ve done nothing wrong, why would you need one?
The backstory is that he committed treason, and is worried that boasting about it to the press will have consequences. https://t.co/wKBE70ZNOr
— Ben Domenech (@bdomenech) January 20, 2025
And then there’s the January 6-related pardons. Biden extended protection not just to Members of Congress and staff who served on the Select Committee but also to U.S. Capitol Police and D.C. Metropolitan officers who testified. For a president who spent his tenure casting himself as the defender of democracy, this sweeping move is a head-scratcher. Blanket pardons for those who participated in what Republicans have widely criticized as a partisan, one-sided investigation? It reeks of a closing gambit to shield allies and preserve a narrative, even if it means rewriting the rulebook on presidential norms.
Milley was not the only one alarmed. Based on our reporting for "Peril," CIA Director Gina Haspel, for instance, told Milley, “We are on the way to a right-wing coup.” cc: @realBobWoodward https://t.co/RtLHaBOvNt
— Robert Costa (@costareports) January 20, 2025
But the most eyebrow-raising pardon? None other than Biden’s son, Hunter. After publicly vowing he’d never interfere in his son’s legal troubles, Biden did exactly that. His reasoning? Hunter had allegedly paid his back taxes. Really? That’s the bar for a pardon now? Even Democrats seem uneasy with this one. As former Obama aide Tommy Vietor put it, this kind of move makes “everyone look stupid” and confirms suspicions of double standards and political favoritism. It’s the kind of decision that will haunt Biden’s legacy, regardless of how the media tries to spin it.
Meanwhile, Trump allies like Steve Bannon have focused on Milley as a target for legal action once Trump is in office: "I think Mark Milley has to be recalled to active duty on the afternoon of the 20th... a military tribunal ... a court martial."https://t.co/IAKoUw0bpX
— Robert Costa (@costareports) January 20, 2025
Let’s not forget the glaring omissions in this pardoning spree. Conspicuously absent are names like Special Counsel Jack Smith, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and Attorney General Merrick Garland. Could Biden have drawn the line to avoid the optics of sweeping protections for every key player in his administration? Or did he sense that sparing these figures would be a bridge too far for an already frustrated public? Either way, their absence from the pardon list speaks volumes.
Predictably, backlash came swift and fierce. Senator Eric Schmitt didn’t mince words, calling Biden one of the “worst Presidents in American history” and slamming his last-minute actions as another bulldozer to constitutional norms. And honestly, Schmitt isn’t wrong. Biden’s entire presidency has been a study in hypocrisy. He promised unity, but he left the nation more divided. He vowed to uphold democratic values, but he undermined trust in institutions. And now, with these pardons, he’s given Americans yet another reason to doubt the integrity of their leadership.