Joe Biden pardons own family members and public servants to guard against potential ‘revenge’ by Trump
Outgoing US President Joe Biden used his final hours in the White House to issue several pre-emptive pardons – including to members of his own family.
In his final act in office, Mr Biden issued the blanket pardons to five members of his family due to what he called “unrelenting attacks” from Trump and his allies.
“Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,” he said in a statement issuing the pardons, for his brother James and his wife, Sara, his sister Valerie and her husband, John Owens, and his brother Francis.
He added: “The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgement that they engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offence.”
Trump inauguration latest: Follow live updates
Separately, last month, Mr Biden pardoned his son, Hunter, after he was convicted of gun charges and pleaded guilty to federal tax evasion.
Earlier, in his final hours in office, Mr Biden also issued several pre-emptive pardons in a bid to protect public servants from the potential of “revenge” by the president-elect.
He said those being issued pardons had been “subjected to ongoing threats and intimidation for faithfully discharging their duties” and in some cases threatened with criminal prosecutions.
It comes after Mr Trump warned of an “enemies list”, comprised of people who have crossed him politically or sought to hold him accountable for what prosecutors earlier this week called an unprecedented attempt to overturn the 2020 election.
Those issued a pardon include Dr Anthony Fauci, who helped coordinate the US response to COVID but raised the ire of Mr Trump when he refused to back his unfounded claims about the virus.
Retired general Mark Milley, who previously called the president-elect a fascist and detailed his conduct around the 2021 insurrection, also received a pardon.
Dr Anthony Fauci. Pic: Reuters
“I cannot in good conscience do nothing,” Mr Biden said on Monday.
“Baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families.”
Mr Trump reacted to the pardons in a text message to Sky News’ US partner network, NBC News, calling the move “disgraceful” and claimed, without any evidence, that many of the pardoned individuals were “guilty of major crimes”.
Dr Fauci told US broadcaster ABC that he “truly appreciates” the pardon from Mr Biden.
Retired US general Mark Milley. Pic: Reuters
“I have committed no crime… and there are no possible grounds for any allegation or threat of criminal investigation or prosecution of me,” he said.
Gen Milley added: “I do not wish to spend whatever remaining time the Lord grants me fighting those who unjustly might seek retribution for perceived slights.
“I do not want to put my family, my friends, and those with whom I served through the resulting distraction, expense, and anxiety.”
‘Not breaking the law, but upholding it’
Members and staff of the House Select Committee, which investigated the January 6 riots and police officers who testified before that committee, have also been pardoned.
Liz Cheney with Mr Biden. Pic: Reuters
Those on the committee included Senator Adam Schiff, former Reps Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Elaine Luria, Stephanie Murphy, Pete Aguilar, Zoe Lofgren, Jamie Raskin and Bennie Thompson.
Heads of the committee, Ms Cheney and Mr Thompson, said the pardons from Mr Biden are “not for breaking the law but for upholding it”.
The police officers who testified before the committee included Harry Dunn, Aquilino Gonell, Michael Fanone and Daniel Hodges, NBC reported.
The committee’s final report found that Mr Trump criminally engaged in a “multi-part conspiracy” to overturn the lawful results of the 2020 presidential election and failed to act to stop his supporters from attacking the Capitol.
Read more:
Trump to declare national emergency at US-Mexico border
Can a Labour prime minister get on with a Republican president?
Mr Biden has set the presidential record for most individual pardons and commutations issued.
He announced on Friday he would be reducing the sentences of almost 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offences.
This is on top of 37 people who are currently on death row, who had their sentences converted to life imprisonment.
US
Donald Trump plans to hit Canada with new tariff – while warning of blanket hike for other countries
Donald Trump has said he plans to hit Canada with a 35% tariff on imported goods, as he warned of a blanket 15 or 20% hike for most other countries.
In a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the US president wrote: “I must mention that the flow of Fentanyl is hardly the only challenge we have with Canada, which has many Tariff, and Non-Tariff, Policies and Trade Barriers.”
Mr Trump’s tariffs were allegedly an effort to get Canada to crack down on fentanyl smuggling, and the US president has expressed frustration with Canada’s trade deficit with the US.
In a statement Mr Carney said: “Throughout the current trade negotiations with the United States, the Canadian government has steadfastly defended our workers and businesses. We will continue to do so as we work towards the revised deadline of August 1.”
He added: “Canada has made vital progress to stop the scourge of fentanyl in North America. We are committed to continuing to work with the United States to save lives and protect communities in both our countries.”
Mr Trump has sent a series of tariff letters to 23 countries so far, including one putting a 50% tariff on Brazil in part for the ongoing trial of its former president Jair Bolsonaro for trying to stay in office after he lost the election in 2022.
Mr Trump was similarly indicted for his efforts to overturn his election loss in 2020.
The higher rates would go into effect on 1 August.
Shortly after Mr Trump unveiled his “Liberation Day” tariffs on 2 April, there was a huge sell-off on the financial markets. The US president later announced a 90-day negotiating period, during which a 10% baseline tariff would be charged on most imported goods.
👉 Follow Trump100 on your podcast app 👈
But in an interview with Sky News’s partner network NBC News, Mr Trump said he plans to impose higher blanket tariffs on most US trade partners.
“We’re just going to say all of the remaining countries are going to pay, whether it’s 20% or 15%. We’ll work that out now,” he said.
He added: “I think the tariffs have been very well-received. The stock market hit a new high today.”
The US and UK signed a trade deal in June, with the US president calling it “a fair deal for both” and saying it will “produce a lot of jobs, a lot of income”.
Sir Keir Starmer said the document “implements” the deal to cut tariffs on cars and aerospace, adding: “So this is a very good day for both of our countries – a real sign of strength.”
Read more:
Trump fires tariff threats at more nations as EU ‘ready’
Palestinian activist detained by ICE suing Trump administration
The US president also teased a “major statement” he will make on Russia over its war with Ukraine.
“I’m disappointed in Russia, but we’ll see what happens over the next couple of weeks,” he said.
“I think I’ll have a major statement to make on Russia on Monday.”
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
It comes as Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, said a new round of talks between Moscow and Washington on bilateral problems could take place before the end of the summer.
A Palestinian activist who was detained for over three months in a US immigration jail after protesting against Israel is suing Donald Trump’s administration for $20m (£15m) in damages.
Lawyers for Mahmoud Khalil have filed a claim against the administration alleging he was falsely imprisoned, maliciously prosecuted and smeared as an antisemite as the government sought to deport him over his role in campus protests.
The 30-year-old graduate student at Columbia University told Sky News’s lead world presenter Yalda Hakim being detained by ICE agents in March “felt like kidnapping”.
He described “plain-clothed agents and unmarked cars” taking him “from one place to another, expecting you just to follow orders and shackled all the time”, which he said was “really scary”.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Mahmoud Khalil reunites with family after release
Mr Khalil said he was not presented with an arrest warrant and wasn’t told where he was being taken.
He said the detention centre he was taken to was “as far from humane as it could be” and “a place where you have no rights whatsoever”.
“You share a dorm with over 70 men with no privacy, with lights on all the time, with really terrible food. You’re basically being dehumanised at every opportunity. It’s a black hole,” he added.
Mr Khalil said he would also accept an official apology from the Trump administration.
The Trump administration celebrated Mr Khalil’s arrest, promising to deport him and others whose protests against Israel it declared were “pro-terrorist, antisemitic, anti-American activity”.
Mr Khalil said after around 36 hours in captivity he was allowed to speak to his wife, who was pregnant at the time.
“These were very scary hours, I did not know what was happening on the outside. I did not know that my wife was safe,” he said.
Read more from Sky News:
Starmer and Macron agree ‘one in, one out’ migrants return deal
Officers who confronted ‘coward’ killer win bravery award
‘Absolutely absurd allegations’
Mr Khalil said administration officials had made “absolutely absurd allegations” by saying he as involved in antisemitic activities and supporting Hamas.
“They are weaponising antisemitism, weaponising anti-terrorism in order to stifle speech,” he said. “What I was engaged in is simply opposing a genocide, opposing war crimes, opposing Columbia University’s complicity in the war on Gaza.”
A State Department spokesperson said its actions toward Mr Khalil were fully supported by the law.
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
Asked about missing the birth of his son while he was in prison, Mr Khalil said: “I don’t think there’s any word that can describe the agony and the sadness that I went through, to be deprived from such a divine moment, from a moment that my wife and I had always dreamed about.”
Meanwhile, the deportation case against Mr Khalil is continuing to wind its way through the immigration court system.
Donald Trump has praised the Liberian president’s command of English – the West African country’s official language.
The US president reacted with visible surprise to Joseph Boakai’s English-speaking skills during a White House meeting with leaders from the region on Wednesday.
After the Liberian president finished his brief remarks, Mr Trump told him he speaks “such good English” and asked: “Where did you learn to speak so beautifully?”
Mr Trump seemed surprised when Mr Boakai laughed and responded he learned in Liberia.
The US president said: “It’s beautiful English.
“I have people at this table who can’t speak nearly as well.”
Mr Boakai did not tell Mr Trump that English is the official language of Liberia.
The country was founded in 1822 with the aim of relocating freed African slaves and freeborn black citizens from the US.
👉 Follow Trump100 on your podcast app 👈
Mr Trump promised the leaders of Liberia, Senegal, Gabon, Mauritania and Guinea-Bissau a pivot from aid to trade at the surprise meeting.
He described the countries as “all very vibrant places with very valuable land, great minerals, and great oil deposits, and wonderful people”.
Read more from Sky News:
Gaza permanent ceasefire ‘questionable’, says Israeli official
Four dead and ‘many’ kidnapped after Houthi rebels sink ship
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
Later asked by a reporter if he’ll visit the continent, Mr Trump said, “At some point, I would like to go to Africa.”
But he added that he’d “have to see what the schedule looks like”.
Trump’s predecessor, President Joe Biden, promised to go to Africa in 2023, but only fulfilled the commitment by visiting Angola in December 2024, just weeks before he left office.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike