Just weeks after then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden was declared the winner over President Donald Trump in 2020, he told CNN’s Jake Tapper that Trump’s reported consideration of preemptive pardons concerned him.
Biden and then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris sat down for an interview with Tapper in early December 2020. Biden was asked about Trump potentially issuing preemptive pardons for his closest allies and himself — a move Trump never made. Biden responded by promising that the American people would not “see in our administration that kind of approach to pardons.”
“President Trump is reportedly considering a wave of preemptive pardons. … Does this concern you?” Tapper asked.
“Well, it concerns me in terms of what kind of precedent it sets and how the rest of the world looks at us as a nation of laws and justice,” Biden said.
“Now in terms of the pardons, you’re not going to see in our administration that kind of approach to pardons,” he added. “Nor are you going to see in our administration the approach to making policy by tweets. You know, it’s going to be a totally different way to which we approach the justice system.”
Biden’s comments from four years ago directly contradict his last-minute action on Monday morning to issue preemptive pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, and members of the Democrat-run January 6 Committee. The Associated Press called the pardons an “extraordinary use of the powers of the presidency,” adding that Biden “has used the power in the broadest and most untested way possible: to pardon those who have not even been investigated.”
CELEBRATE #47 WITH 47% OFF DAILYWIRE+ MEMBERSHIPS + A FREE $20 GIFT
The outgoing president said in a statement that his preemptive pardons for Fauci, Milley, and the J6 Committee “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,” he added.
Biden’s action on Inauguration Day marks the second time the president has gone back on his word to issue pardons before the end of his term. In early December, the president pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, after promising he wouldn’t take such a step. As Biden pledged to the public that he would not pardon Hunter after his conviction in June, the president was reportedly discussing a pardon behind the scenes.
[#item_full_content]
[[{“value”:”
Just weeks after then-Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden was declared the winner over President Donald Trump in 2020, he told CNN’s Jake Tapper that Trump’s reported consideration of preemptive pardons concerned him.
Biden and then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris sat down for an interview with Tapper in early December 2020. Biden was asked about Trump potentially issuing preemptive pardons for his closest allies and himself — a move Trump never made. Biden responded by promising that the American people would not “see in our administration that kind of approach to pardons.”
“President Trump is reportedly considering a wave of preemptive pardons. … Does this concern you?” Tapper asked.
“Well, it concerns me in terms of what kind of precedent it sets and how the rest of the world looks at us as a nation of laws and justice,” Biden said.
“Now in terms of the pardons, you’re not going to see in our administration that kind of approach to pardons,” he added. “Nor are you going to see in our administration the approach to making policy by tweets. You know, it’s going to be a totally different way to which we approach the justice system.”
Biden’s comments from four years ago directly contradict his last-minute action on Monday morning to issue preemptive pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, and members of the Democrat-run January 6 Committee. The Associated Press called the pardons an “extraordinary use of the powers of the presidency,” adding that Biden “has used the power in the broadest and most untested way possible: to pardon those who have not even been investigated.”
CELEBRATE #47 WITH 47% OFF DAILYWIRE+ MEMBERSHIPS + A FREE $20 GIFT
The outgoing president said in a statement that his preemptive pardons for Fauci, Milley, and the J6 Committee “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,” he added.
Biden’s action on Inauguration Day marks the second time the president has gone back on his word to issue pardons before the end of his term. In early December, the president pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, after promising he wouldn’t take such a step. As Biden pledged to the public that he would not pardon Hunter after his conviction in June, the president was reportedly discussing a pardon behind the scenes.
“}]]
