Joe Biden apologized to Anthony Fauci, Liz Cheney and Mark Milley

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Joe Biden has issued a beta pardon to Anthony Fauci, Liz Cheney and Mark Milley, hours before he fired US President Donald Trump, who vowed to take revenge on political enemies.

The outgoing president’s latest move to protect high-profile figures from future prosecution comes after Biden fully exercised his pardon power as he neared his departure from the White House.

It preempts the move that many expect as soon as Trump takes office on Monday.

Trump has threatened legal action against Fauci, the president’s former chief medical adviser, over his role in overseeing the US response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Miley, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has a long history of animosity with Trump and warned him before last year’s election that he was a “fascist to the core”.

On Monday, Miley said he and his family were “very grateful” for Biden’s move, adding, “After forty-three years of service to our country in uniform, I don’t want to spend the rest of my life defending and defending the Constitution, and the Lord has allowed me to fight those who seek retribution against those who have wronged me.”

Cheney, a prominent Republican, campaigned for Kamala Harris in last year’s presidential election and served as vice chairman of the congressional investigation into the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

Biden said he was apologizing to members of Congress and staff who served on the committee, as well as police officers who testified against him.

“Appallingly, civil servants are subjected to continuous threats and intimidation for the faithful discharge of their duties,” he said in a statement.

Last year, the outgoing president controversially pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, from prison in connection with federal gun and tax offenses, as well as from other crimes he may have been investigated for since 2014.

Trump is expected to begin his second term by granting clemency to some of the rioters convicted of the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol in an attempt to block the confirmation of Biden’s victory.

The incoming president has vowed to dramatically shake up US law enforcement agencies, including the Justice Department and the FBI, in his second term, raising fears that he will use them more actively to target political and personal opponents.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the Justice Department in recent years, describing it as a “tool” against him. He faces federal indictment on charges of mishandling classified documents and his role in overturning the election results.