WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� President has pardoned his former personal lawyer , his onetime chief of staff and others accused of backing the Republican’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
The 鈥渇ull, complete, and unconditional” pardon for dozens of Trump allies are largely symbolic. It applies only to federal crimes, and none of the people named in the proclamation were ever charged federally over the bid to subvert the election . It doesn’t affect state charges, though state prosecutions stemming from the 2020 election .
The move, however, underscores Trump鈥檚 continued efforts to promote from him even though and Trump’s at the time found no evidence of fraud that could have affected the outcome. , and of the election in the where Trump contested his loss also affirmed .
Trump’s recent action follows the sweeping pardons of the hundreds of at the U.S. Capitol, including those convicted of attacking law enforcement.
Ed Martin, the Department of Justice’s point-man on pardons and a former lawyer for Jan. 6 defendants, linked his announcement of the pardons to a post on X that read 鈥淣o MAGA left behind.鈥�
Dozens of Trump allies received pardons
Among those also pardoned were , an attorney who promoted about a stolen election, , another lawyer who Trump in power, and , a former Justice Department official who championed Trump鈥檚 efforts to challenge his election loss.
Also named were Republicans who acted as for Trump and were charged in state cases accusing them of submitting false certificates that confirmed they were legitimate electors despite Biden’s victory in those states.
The proclamation explicitly says the pardon does not apply to the president himself, who has continued to that the 2020 election was stolen from him, used that falsehood to argue for and demanded his Department of Justice
The pardon described efforts to prosecute the Trump allies as “a grave national injustice perpetrated on the American people鈥� and said the pardons were designed to continue 鈥渢he process of national reconciliation.鈥� Giuliani and others have denied any wrongdoing, arguing they were simply challenging an election they believed was tainted by fraud.
鈥淭hese great Americans were persecuted and put through hell by the Biden Administration for challenging an election, which is the cornerstone of democracy,鈥� White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in an emailed statement.
Those pardoned were not prosecuted by the Biden administration, however. They were charged only by state prosecutors who operate separately from the Justice Department.
An after the 2020 election found 475 cases of potential voter fraud across the , far too few to change the outcome.
Impact of the pardons is limited
Giuliani, a former New York City mayor, was one of the most vocal supporters of of large-scale voter fraud after the 2020 election. He also is an example of the limited impact of the pardons.
Giuliani has in Washington, D.C., and New York over his advocacy of Trump鈥檚 bogus election claims and brought by two former Georgia election workers whose lives were upended by conspiracy theories he pushed. Since pardons only absolve people from legal responsibility for federal crimes, they’re unlikely to ease Giuliani’s legal woes.
Ted Goodman, a spokesperson for Giuliani, said the former mayor 鈥渘ever sought a pardon but is deeply grateful for President Trump鈥檚 decision.鈥�
鈥淢ayor Rudy Giuliani stands by his work following the 2020 presidential election, when he responded to the legitimate concerns of thousands of everyday Americans,鈥� Goodman said in an emailed statement.
While the pardons may have no immediate legal impact, experts warned they send a dangerous message for future elections.
鈥淚t is a complete abdication of the responsibility of the federal government to ensure we don鈥檛 have future attempts to overturn elections,鈥� said Rick Hasen, a UCLA law professor. 鈥淯ltimately, the message it sends is 鈥榃e’ll take care of you when the time comes.鈥欌��
Some pardoned were co-conspirators in Trump’s federal case
Trump himself was indicted on federal accusing him of working to overturn his 2020 election defeat, but the case brought by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith in November after Trump’s victory over Democrat Kamala Harris because of the department’s policy against prosecuting sitting presidents. Giuliani, Powell, Eastman and Clark were alleged co-conspirators in the federal case brought against Trump but were never charged with federal crimes.
Giuliani, Meadows and others named in the proclamation had been charged by prosecutors in Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin over the 2020 election, but the cases or have been dismissed. A judge in September dismissed the Michigan case against 15 Republicans accused of attempting to falsely certify Trump as the winner of the election in that battleground state.
Eastman, a former dean of Chapman University Law School in Southern California, was a close adviser to Trump in the wake of the 2020 election and wrote a memo laying out to stop the counting of electoral votes while presiding over Congress鈥� joint session on Jan. 6 to keep Trump in office.
Clark, who is now overseeing a federal regulatory office, also is in Washington over his advocacy of Trump’s claims. Clark clashed with Justice Department superiors over a letter he drafted after the 2020 election that said the department was investigating 鈥渧arious irregularities鈥� and had identified 鈥渟ignificant concerns鈥� that may have affected the election in Georgia and other states.
Clark said in a social media post Monday that he 鈥渄id nothing wrong鈥� and 鈥渟houldn’t have had to battle this witch hunt for 4+ years.鈥�
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Associated Press reporter Nicholas Riccardi in Denver contributed to this report.
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