The pardons were announced as Biden and others stood at the U.S. Capitol to see Trump inaugurated.
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday pardoned his siblings and their spouses, saying his family had been “subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me — the worst kind of partisan politics.”
“Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,” he said. He issued a slew of pardons and commutations in the moments before leaving office, including for aides and allies that have been targeted by Donald Trump. None have been charged with any crimes.
Last month, he pardoned his son, Hunter for tax and gun crimes.
Biden issued blanket pardons for his brother James and his wife, Sara, his sister Valerie and her husband, John Owens, and his brother Francis.
“The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that they engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense,” he said in a statement.
The pardons came as Biden and others stood at the U.S. Capitol to see Trump inaugurated.
“I believe in the rule of law, and I am optimistic that the strength of our legal institutions will ultimately prevail over politics,” Biden said. “But baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families. Even when individuals have done nothing wrong and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage their reputations and finances.”
The newest round of pardons comes hours after Biden announced he would pardon Dr. Anthony Fauci, who often was at odds with Trump during the COVID-19 pandemic;Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Milley, who testified against him; and the members of the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
In his final days in office, Biden cemented his legacy with the most pardons and sentences commuted out of any president, with more than 2,500 people serving federal sentences offered clemency.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.