SHAMELESS Joe Biden is reportedly planning sweeping preemptive pardons for “enemies” of Donald Trump before he takes over the White House.
This potential action, occurring merely days after Biden granted his convicted son Hunter an unconditional pardon, might represent a hazardous exercise of the president’s remarkable constitutional authority.
Trump has vowed to go against many of his critics – and put them in jail – after he officially takes on the Oval Office on January 20.
Many of them are current and former government officials.
In a bid to protect them from prosecution – and heft legal fees – Biden is said to have discussed the possibility of handing out preemptive pardons with senior White House officials as well as lawyers.
Pardons are historically afforded to those accused of specific crimes and usually those who have already been convicted of an offense.
But Biden’s team is considering issuing them for those who have not even been investigated, let alone charged.
They fear that Trump and his allies – who have boasted about a list of enemies and taking revenge – could launch investigations against targets that are largely Biden allies.
Among those being considered are former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney, an outspoken critic of Trump, California’s Senator-elect Adam Schiff, who led the first impeachment effort against Trump and Anthony Fauci, who helped coordinate Biden’s COVID-19 response.
Others include lawyers and witnesses in Trump’s criminal or civil trials and Biden administration officials who have drawn the ire of the incoming president and his allies.
But White House officials are debating whether the president should dole out such pardons to people who have not committed crimes and about the message that would send, sources have said.
No decisions have been made, the people said, and it is possible Biden opts to do nothing at all.
While the president’s pardon power is absolute, Biden’s use in this fashion would mark a significant expansion of how they are deployed.
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.
One White House source said: “The question right now is whether people being considered for these pardons want them.”
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters earlier this week to expect more pardons from Biden before the end of his term.
The U.S. Constitution gives a president broad pardon powers but preemptive pardons for offenses that have not yet been charged are largely untested.
That could serve as a model for other pardons Biden might issue to those who could find themselves in legal jeopardy under Trump.
Some fearful former officials have reached out to the Biden White House preemptively seeking some sort of protection from the future Trump administration, another source added.
The conversations have picked up steam after Biden pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, on Sunday, after previously saying he would not issue such a pardon.
He claimed his son was “unfairly prosecuted” as he announced his drastic decision.
The outgoing US leader had in June he would “not pardon former crack addict Hunter, 54, after he was convicted of three firearm charges.
The Hunter-Biden saga
FOR the longest time, Biden outright denied granting a presidential pardon to his convicted son Hunter.
As recently as early November, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre ruled out a pardon or clemency for the younger Biden, saying: “We’ve been asked that question multiple times. Our answer stands, which is no.”
But that changed last week when the ageing president, who will soon leave the white house, issued a pardon for his troubled son in a shocking U-turn.
In a statement explaining the pardon, Biden claimed his son had been treated differently.
“The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election,” he said.
“There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution.
“In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here.”
Hunter’s pardon caps a long-running legal saga for the president’s son, who publicly disclosed he was under federal investigation in December 2020 – a month after his father’s 2020 victory.
The pardon covers alleged crimes Hunter may have committed between 2014 and 2024.
These were the charges brought against him:
Count 1: Hunter was charged with “knowingly making a fictitious written statement” on a form used for firearms purchases.
Count 2: Hunter allegedly knowingly made false statements and representations to the Wilmington gun store.
Count 3: Hunter was accused of illegally possession a gun while abusing drugs. He owned the gun for 11 days in 2018.
Hunter faced up to 25 years in prison but he has now been pardoned by his father.
Incoming President Trump, 78, blasted the decision.
Referencing those jailed for the riot at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, he wrote: “Does the pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years?
“Such an abuse and miscarriage of justice.”
“That system of justice must be fixed and due process must be restored for all Americans, which is exactly what President Trump will do as he returns to the White House with an overwhelming mandate from the American people.”
He said at the time: “I abide by the jury decision. I will do that and I will not pardon him.”
Hunter was convicted of federal gun charges and was due to be sentenced on December 12.
He also faced sentencing in relation to his federal tax conviction.
David Richards, chair of the University of Lynchburg political science department, believes Biden has “nothing to lose” by pardoning his son.
In an exclusive interview with The U.S. Sun, he noted it will be interesting to see who he pardons in the coming weeks.
On the campaign trail, Trump made no secret of his desire to seek revenge on those who prosecuted him or crossed him.
He has talked about “enemies from within” and floated social media posts calling to jail top white house officials and former government aides
Kash Patel, whom Trump has announced as his nominee to be director of the FBI, has listed dozens of former government officials he wanted to come after.
“We’re going to come after you, whether it’s criminally or civilly,” Patel said.
“We’ll figure that out. But yeah, we’re putting you all on notice. We’re going to use the Constitution to prosecute them for crimes they said we have always been guilty of but never have.”
