Biden grants sweeping pre-emptive pardons to family members and Jan. 6 committee members

In the final weeks of his presidency, President Biden grants pre-emptive pardons to several family members, including brothers James Biden and Frank Biden, and to the members of the House Select Committee that investigated January 6, including Reps. Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Adam Schiff, Jamie Raskin, and others, citing concerns they could face politically motivated prosecution under the incoming Trump administration. Biden also commutes the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row, converting them to life imprisonment. The pardons draw sharp criticism from Republicans. Biden defends them as protecting individuals from retaliatory prosecution.