Some of these include former White House Chief Medical Advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, who became a lightning rod for criticism during the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic when he used his position of authority as longtime head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to shape America’s public health policies.
Other officials who may be targeted include Senator-elect Adam Schiff (D-CA), who led Democrats in their first impeachment trial against Trump during his first term; and former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), an avowed anti-Trump Republican who the real estate mogul previously said “should go to jail along with the rest of the Unselect Committee,” referring to the House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 Attack.
White House aides lobbying Biden to approve the preemptive pardons
According to reports, the president himself has been intensely focused on the pardon for Hunter and has yet to be spoken to about how to handle the potential pardons. The deliberations are being led by White House Counsel Ed Siskel and Chief of Staff Jeff Zients.
The White House aides were reportedly spurred to open discussions regarding these preemptive pardons by repeated so-called threats from Trump to investigate the Biden administration for crimes it may have committed. Several unnamed congressional Democrats have also been quietly lobbying the White House to pass these pardons.
“If it’s clear by Jan. 19 that [revenge] is [Trump’s] intention, then I would recommend to [outgoing] President Biden that he provide those preemptive pardons to people, because that’s really what our country is going to need next year,” said Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA), who remarked in an interview with local media outlet WGBH that Biden should emulate former President Gerald Ford’s preemptive pardon of former President Richard Nixon before any charges were filed against the latter for the Watergate scandal.
Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA), a close ally of the outgoing president who hosted Biden in his district shortly before the election, also called on Biden to offer blanket pardons before his term ends. He claimed that the “threats” from Trump are real and should concern many Democrats.
“This is no hypothetical threat,” said Boyle. “The time for cautious restraint is over. We must act with urgency to push back against these threats and prevent Trump from abusing his power.”
Other congressional Democrats have reportedly been uneasy with the idea of granting blanket pardons, believing it to be an abuse of power. Even Schiff has warned Biden against it.
“I would urge the president not to do that,” he said. “I think it would seem defensive and unnecessary.”
A man has died in a fire in Cumbria, with emergency services still at the scene, and people warned to stay away from the town.Cumbria Police said the victim, in his forties, was found in the property in Kirkby Lonsdale where the fire started, and pronounced dead at around 6.30am. The blaze broke out at apartments opposite the Red Dragon pub in Main Street."Emergency services remain in attendance at a […]
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