Biden issues preemptive pardons for his family members in final moments of presidency
Washington DC - Outgoing President Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons for several close family members in the final moments before the inauguration of Donald Trump.
Just minutes before Trump was sworn in as president, Biden announced he was issuing pardons to his brother James Biden, James's wife Sara Jones Biden, his sister Valerie Biden Owens, Valerie's husband John Owens, and his brother Francis Biden.
"My family has been subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me – the worst kind of partisan politics," Biden said in a statement.
"Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end."
Earlier in the day, Biden issued preemptive pardons to former Covid-19 advisor Anthony Fauci and retired general Mark Milley to shield them from "politically motivated prosecutions" under the Trump administration.
Biden has also commuted to home confinement the life sentence of Native American activist Leonard Peltier (80), who has been imprisoned for nearly 50 years for the 1975 murders of two FBI agents.
In December, the Democrat went back on his initial promises and pardoned his son, Hunter, who was facing sentencing for two criminal cases related to tax evasion and the purchase of a firearm.
Cover photo: REUTERS