Biden Pardons Milley, Fauci, Cheney on Last Half Day
A preemptive strike against potential abuse of power.

Joe Biden will cease being President in less than two hours, but he issued this before heading over to his successor’s inauguration:
Our nation relies on dedicated, selfless public servants every day. They are the lifeblood of our democracy.
Yet alarmingly, public servants have been subjected to ongoing threats and intimidation for faithfully discharging their duties.
In certain cases, some have even been threatened with criminal prosecutions, including General Mark A. Milley, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, and the members and staff of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. 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.
General Milley served our nation for more than 40 years, serving in multiple command and leadership posts and deploying to some of the most dangerous parts of the world to protect and defend democracy. As Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he guided our Armed Forces through complex global security threats and strengthened our existing alliances while forging new ones.
For more than half a century, Dr. Fauci served our country. He saved countless lives by managing the government’s response to pressing health crises, including HIV/AIDS, as well as the Ebola and Zika viruses. During his tenure as my Chief Medical Advisor, he helped the country tackle a once-in-a-century pandemic. The United States is safer and healthier because of him.
On January 6, 2021, American democracy was tested when a mob of insurrectionists attacked the Capitol in an attempt to overturn a fair and free election by force and violence. In light of the significance of that day, Congress established the bipartisan Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol to investigate and report upon the facts, circumstances, and causes of the insurrection. The Select Committee fulfilled this mission with integrity and a commitment to discovering the truth. Rather than accept accountability, those who perpetrated the January 6th attack have taken every opportunity to undermine and intimidate those who participated in the Select Committee in an attempt to rewrite history, erase the stain of January 6th for partisan gain, and seek revenge, including by threatening criminal prosecutions.
I believe in the rule of law, and I am optimistic that the strength of our legal institutions will ultimately prevail over politics. But these are exceptional circumstances, and I cannot in good conscience do nothing. Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families. Even when individuals have done nothing wrong—and in fact have done the right thing—and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage reputations and finances.
That is why I am exercising my authority under the Constitution to pardon General Mark A. Milley, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the Members of Congress and staff who served on the Select Committee, and the U.S. Capitol and D.C. Metropolitan police officers who testified before the Select Committee. The issuance of these 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. Our nation owes these public servants a debt of gratitude for their tireless commitment to our country.
It’s not clear what it is they’re being pardoned for, since they have been charged with no crimes. Is this a blanket pardon for anything they might have done, ever, as was the case with the pardon of his wayward son, Hunter?
While unprecedented and unseemly, it is, alas, almost certainly the right thing to do. The incoming President has vowed revenge on these people and, as Biden implies, simply having to defend oneself against scurrilous charges can be ruinous. We live in strange times, indeed.
James, thank you for facing the truth.
My standard criticism of your posts is that you are still thinking like it’s decades ago – this shows that you can face reality.
I pretty much agree with all this (which doesn’t happen that often anymore, so enjoy it, James). I posted more on Matt’s thread dealing with the same subject.
But I wish people wouldn’t assume that a pre-emptive pardon is some kind of shield that will repel all attacks. As I said in the other thread:
“James Comer was interviewed the other day saying he’s investigating how his committee can get around Hunter Biden’s pardon and still go after him…
…And what you should be considering is that even Biden knows the pardons aren’t going to work – at best, they can only slow things down on the road to the show trials. Fauci, Milley et al would be best advised to get the hell out of the country.”
You got this right, James. Needs must, as the Brits say.
Now we can have a proper documenting of the actions in a public forum without those involved refusing to answer out of fear they may be subject to prosecution due to their testimony. And it removes the “open investigation” excuse so beloved by the FBI when they are covering up for political misbehavior.
Fortunately, Comer is one of the dumber members of the GOP caucus, and the only thing he was able to do regarding Hunter Biden was ginning up enough pressure on David Weiss to renege on the settlement and proceed to trial. Immediately after the pardon, the notion of further investigation because “now he can’t plead the 5th” began over in Wingnuttia, and it is taking root again for the Fauci/Milley/Cheney et al. pardons, which shows the true objective is not to find any elusive truth, but to intimidate, harass, and cause financial problems for earnest public servants, and to incidentally provide hours of programming for Fox, Newsmax and all the radio blowhards.
@JKB:
Every single time you creeps launch one of your kangaroo court ‘investigations,’ it amounts to nothing. The future is many tedious hearings with some MAGA cretin sputtering absurd accusations and being laughed at by Democrats. You know, like how we laugh at you.
@Not the IT Dept.: I’d love to see House Republicans waste the time they should be spending on lowering the price of eggs and reducing crime to 0% on yet more of their useless investigations that end in a whimper.
What did Weiss end up getting Hunter Biden on? Buying a handgun after smoking dope? Is Hillary locked up yet?
@JKB: I agree. But even after this nothingburger unhappy meal is presented in all it’s glorious nothingness, you’ll still be whinging about how “have[ing] a proper documenting of the actions in a public forum” is essential and hasn’t really happened yet.
One has to wonder what crimes Fauci, et al, were involved in back in 2014. A full 5 years before the virus escaped the lab in China.
update: Sorry, that was the pardon of the Biden and Owens “family” members.
Ah ha! Notice, Biden did not include Merrick Garland on the preemptive pardons list. Alas, he was unoffensive in his duties.
Also, do not be surprised if these pardons do not put retribution of one sort or another out of reach for Trump. More likely, less visible persons downstream will be singled out for making examples. Trump, Miller and crew have need to vent all that excess animus that drives them.
You know, we really should investigate that Benghazi situation. There is probably some real meat there.
@Slugger: The public hearings we needed were an investigation of the Abbey Gate bombing at the end of the Afghanistan withdrawal, that killing 13 U.S. troops and ~170 Afghans. Namely, who made the call to acquiese to U.K. requests to keep the Abbey Gate open that day/week, even after credible intel of a planned terror attack? And why?
Republicans are so unserious they’d rather waste time on COVID conspiracies and Hunter Biden’s dic pics than get answers for Gold Star families. That’s why I’m mostly unbothered by Trump’s fascistic desires. Childish conservative Keystone Cops aren’t competent enough to create an MAGA Reich.