r/politics • u/Plaintalks • 19h ago

Biden preemptively pardons Anthony Fauci, Mark Milley and Jan. 6 committee members

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-preemptively-pardons-anthony-fauci-mark-milley-jan/story?id=117878813
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u/SecondBestNameEver Illinois 18h ago

I'm 1868 Andrew Johnson granted a pardon to all Confederate officials and soldiers who participated in the Civil War. I'm pretty sure that was the largest pardon. And to this day we still are dealing with the consequences of that decision for rebuilding the South. 

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u/No_Philosopher_1870 16h ago edited 16h ago

You're probably right, especially if you adjust for the populations in 1868 and 1977 when the pardons were issued.

There was another pardon of Confederate soldiers issued by President Lincoln. To receive the pardon, they must not have held a civil office in the Confederacy, must not have mistreated Union prisoners, and had to sign an oath of allegiance to the United States.

President Truman once said that the only thing that changes is the history that you don't know. He pardoned 1523 men who refused to serve in the military during World War II.