WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has pardoned his former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, his former chief of staff Mark Meadows and others accused of backing the Republican's efforts to overturn the 2020 election, according to a Justice Department official.
Ed Martin, the government's pardon attorney, posted on social media a signed proclamation of the “full, complete, and unconditional" pardon, which also names conservative attorneys Sidney Powell and John Eastman. The proclamation explicitly says the pardon does not apply to Trump.
Presidential pardons only apply to federal crimes and none of the allies were charged in federal cases. But the move underscores Trump's efforts to continue to rewrite the history of the 2020 election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden.
The White House didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.