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The Biden administration is looking into the possibility of granting blanket pardons before President Trump follows through on his promised retaliation. Officials in the White House are concerned that Trump’s choices for key law enforcement positions suggest he plans to seek retribution against those he sees as his adversaries.
Written by Peter Baker and Erica L. Green
Writing from the capital
President Biden’s team is discussing the possibility of granting pardons to a group of individuals who are seen as enemies of President-elect Donald J. Trump. This is being considered in order to shield them from any potential retaliation that Trump has mentioned he may take after assuming office. Sources familiar with the matter have revealed this information.
The proposal is to grant executive clemency in advance to a group of current and former government officials for any potential crimes they may have committed over several years. This would prevent the next president from carrying out their planned retaliation against these individuals.
Officials at the White House are concerned that President Trump’s choices for key positions in the Justice Department suggest he may act on his promises of seeking revenge. While they do not think the individuals are guilty of any crimes, they fear that investigations could still be initiated, leading to costly legal fees and potential harm to their careers, even if no charges are ultimately brought forth.
The topic of blanket pardons, as reported by Politico, is currently being discussed among staff members. Sources, who asked to remain anonymous, mentioned that although President Biden has talked about it with senior members of his team, it is still in the early stages of consideration. This discussion follows President Biden’s recent pardon of his son Hunter to avoid him going to prison for gun and tax offenses.
Karine Jean-Pierre, who serves as the White House press secretary, chose not to talk about blanket pardons in a briefing on Friday. However, she mentioned that President Biden is looking into potential executive clemency actions before his term ends. Jean-Pierre stated that the president is currently reviewing options and more information will be shared in the future.
Joe Biden hinted at his approach by pardoning his son, clearing not only the charges he was found guilty of, but also any potential crimes he may have been involved in since 2014. This move is likely to prevent Donald Trump’s Justice Department from pursuing Hunter Biden on any accusations that were not deemed worthy of charges by the prosecutor who has been looking into him since Trump’s first term.
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