Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs President Joe Biden’s decision to grant last-minute preemptive pardons to several individuals, could backfire if these individuals are brought before future hearings, according to legal experts.In one of his final acts as president, Biden has granted pardons to General Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, as well as those who served on and testified before the House Select Committee established to investigate the January 6 Capitol attack.”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,” Biden said in a statement released Monday.Newsweek has contacted the Trump transition team for comment.
US President Joe Biden delivers his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House on January 15, 2025 in Washington, D.C. On Monday, Biden granted preemptive pardons to General Mark…
US President Joe Biden delivers his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House on January 15, 2025 in Washington, D.C. On Monday, Biden granted preemptive pardons to General Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and those who served on the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack.
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Why It MattersSome have highlighted that the pardons would remove the individuals’ ability to invoke their fifth amendment rights—most notably those protecting against self-incriminating testimony—if subpoenaed to testify before Congress in the future. If a pardon had been accepted, a recipient would not be able to plead “the fifth” because there would be no threat of incrimination, a law professor told NewsweekWhat To KnowThe list of pardoned individuals, which by extension includes former congresswoman and prominent Trump opponent Liz Cheney, have frequently been in the crosshairs of both the incoming president and House Republicans.Trump verbally sparred with Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, over his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic. His supporters have also called for the immunologist to face criminal charges for allegedly suppressing information relating to the origin of the virus, as well as his involvement in funding potentially risky biomedical research in Wuhan, China.Mark Milley, who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff between 2019 and 2023, faced threats from Trump over undisclosed phone calls to Li Zuocheng, his counterpart in China, in late 2020 and early 2021.Trump called the story “fake news,” after it was initially reported by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, but said that, if true, Milley could “be tried for treason.” Milley later admitted to making the calls and, ahead of leaving his post in September 2023, Trump wrote that the General’s actions were “so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!”For those who served on the January 6 Committee, meanwhile, Trump told NBC’s Meet The Press in December that these individuals “should go to jail.””So Biden pardoned Fauci, Shiff, Cheney and a bunch of others. Fine. That is a president’s prerogative,” former Representative Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) and White House chief of staff during the first Trump administration posted to X on Monday. “But now when Jim Jordan calls them for a hearing, they cannot invoke their 5th Amendment privileges. We might finally get some straight answers.”The issuance of a presidential pardon would make it easier for investigators to question the individuals granted clemency by Biden, given that they will no longer be able to invoke their fifth amendment rights.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army General Mark A. Milley (R) listens while US President Donald Trump speaks before a meeting with senior military leaders in the Cabinet Room of the White House…
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army General Mark A. Milley (R) listens while US President Donald Trump speaks before a meeting with senior military leaders in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, D.C on October 7, 2019. Mark Milley thanked Biden for the pardon, stating that the decision eases his concerns about possible “retribution” from the incoming Trump administration.
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Brendan Smialowski / AFP
The effects of this will extend beyond crimes that they themselves are accused of. Republicans have in the past floated criminal charges against David Morens, a former aide to Anthony Fauci, who the House Coronavirus Select Committee concluded had “deliberately obstructed the Select Subcommittee’s investigation, likely lied to Congress on multiple occasions, unlawfully deleted federal COVID-19 records, and shared nonpublic information about [National Institutes of Health] grant processes.”However, according to Kimberly Wehle, professor of law at the University of Baltimore, this will only be the case if the pardons are accepted.”The pardons do not impact the Fifth Amendment right to self-incrimination unless they are accepted by the recipient,” Wehle told Newsweek, “and there is no legal deadline for doing so.”If there is an acceptance of a pardon and the recipient is called to testify, it is accurate that they cannot successfully invoke the Fifth Amendment on matters covered by the pardon because there would be no threat of incrimination.”What People Are SayingPresident Biden, in statement issued alongside the pardons: “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.”Jesse Binnall, attorney for President Trump, via X: “The pardons are actually great news. No one who was just pardoned will be able to refuse to testify in a civil, criminal, or congressional proceeding based upon the 5th Amendment.”And let’s just be realistic. Most of these disgusting individuals would probably have to be charged in Washington, D.C, which doesn’t convict partisan leftists.”Criminal-defense lawyer Randy Zelin told Newsweek: “The good news for Messrs Milley, Fauci and the J6 folks is that they are relieved from the fear and burden of a federal criminal prosecution.” However, he said that the pardons would carry with them stigma, potentially implying culpability for those in receipt, will cover only federal crimes and not those at the state level, while also depriving the pardonees of their fifth amendment privileges. “So now Messrs. Milley, Fauci and the J6 members are in the hot seat and can’t throw a monkey wrench into the inquiry by taking 5,” Zelin said.Former Representative Adam Kinzinger, one of only two Republicans, alongside Liz Cheney, to serve on the January 6 committee, said on CNN earlier this month: “As soon as you take a pardon, it looks like you are guilty of something.” Law Professor Kimberly Wehle told Newsweek: “If there is an acceptance of a pardon and the recipient is called to testify, it is accurate that they cannot successfully invoke the Fifth Amendment on matters covered by the pardon because there would be no threat of incrimination. If they refuse to testify, they could be held in contempt, but as we saw when Trump witnesses refused to testify in the January 6th matter, that is a laborious process and not as easy to execute as contempt by a judge, although I assume Pam Bondi would not hesitate to prosecute.”What Happens Next?While not confirming whether he would accept Biden’s pardon, General Milley responded on Monday, thanking the outgoing president and stating that this quelled his concerns about potential “retribution” by Trump.Fauci told ABC News on Monday that he “truly appreciates the action President Biden has taken today on my behalf.”Do you have a story we should be covering? Do you have any questions about this article? Contact LiveNews@newsweek.com.
