Former President Joe Biden’s move to extend sweeping pardons to his family and political allies has sparked conversations among conservatives about how the move could potentially backfire on the Democrats. During the final hours of his time in office, as President Donald Trump was preparing to be sworn in, Biden granted sweeping preemptive pardons to numerous family members, the January 6 Committee, and others.
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who had previously served on the January 6 Committee, was the recipient of a pardon. However, no reports at the time suggest the California Democrat has or will accept the extension of legal immunity from the former president. Nonetheless, commentators online have asserted that action should be taken against the senator if he accepts the pardon.
Conservative social media influencer Douglass Mackey, who the federal government convicted for sharing a meme that allegedly sought to deprive citizens of their right to vote, suggested that Schiff should be punished by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) if he accepts the pardon. “If Adam Schiff accepts a Biden pardon, Sen. Thune should remove him from all committees,” he posted on X.
Other users in the comments section agreed with his idea. “He should do this regardless. That man had no business on any committee,” one user said. Another person commented, “Absolutely and his security clearance should be revoked!” A similar comment stated, “He should have to resign and lose his security clearance!”
However, Schiff has maintained that he doesn’t agree with the preemptive pardon from Biden. The California Democrat told the Sacramento Bee last year, “I don’t think a preemptive pardon makes sense.” He added, “I think this is frankly so implausible as not to be worthy of much consideration. I would urge the president not to do that. I think it would seem defensive and unnecessary.”
Furthermore, Schiff described the pardons as “unnecessary” and “unwise” in other remarks. “I continue to believe that the grant of pardons to a committee that undertook such important work to uphold the law was unnecessary, and because of the precedent it establishes, unwise,” he said. “But I certainly understand why President Biden believed he needed to take this step in light of the persistent and baseless threats issued by Donald Trump and individuals who are now some of his law enforcement nominees.”
Some legal experts have weighed in on the pardons, explaining that they could backfire on the recipients if they choose to accept the immunity, explaining that they would nullify their right to plead their Fifth Amendment rights and avoid incriminating testimony if subpoenaed by Congress. This legal implication could serve as a weapon for Republicans in future investigations.
"*" indicates required fields
“The pardons do not impact the Fifth Amendment right to self-incrimination unless they are accepted by the recipient,” Professor of law at the University of Baltimore, Kimberly Wehle, explained to Newsweek, “and there is no legal deadline for doing so.” She added, “If there is an acceptance of a pardon and the recipient is called to testify, it is accurate that they cannot successfully invoke the Fifth Amendment on matters covered by the pardon because there would be no threat of incrimination.”
Watch Trump call out Liz Cheney and the J6 Committee below: