In the last minutes of his disastrous Presidency, Joseph R. Biden issued a number of “preemptive” pardons to some members of the so-called “Biden Crime Family,” including his siblings and their spouses, the Federal Government’s COVID villain Dr. Anthony Fauci, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the treacherous Gen. Mark Miley, along with all of the members of the heavy-handed, ill-conceived January 6 Committee (which doctored evidence, ran roughshod over the rights of people, deleted encrypted files, etc…). (President Biden also granted pardons or clemency to cop killers, over three dozen inmates on federal death row, over 2,500 drug offenders and his convicted felon son, Hunter Biden.)
The pardons issued to the “Biden Crime Family,” Dr. Fauci, Gen. Miley and the January 6 Committee came before any criminal investigations were even initiated. These are clearly preemptive pardons. Essentially, a “preemptive pardon” is a pardon issued before an individual is convicted of, or even charged with, a crime. The question is does the President’s Constitutional Pardon Power extend to people who are yet to be convicted of or even charged with any federal crime? While the answer is not entirely clear, I believe the Constitution does grant the President the power to grant preemptive pardons. Let’s dig a little deeper into the issues.
