Trump pardons Rudy Giuliani, key figures involved in efforts to overturn 2020 election

US President Donald Trump has issued full pardons to Rudy Giuliani, his former personal lawyer, and Mark Meadows, his former chief of staff, for their roles in efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Ed Martin, the government’s pardon attorney, posted the proclamation online on Sunday night.

The proclamation also pardons conservative lawyers Sidney Powell and John Eastman.

The document states that the pardon is “full, complete, and unconditional”, but specifies that it does not apply to Trump himself.

None of the individuals named had been charged with federal offences, which is the only category covered by presidential pardons.

The Associated Press reports that the development points to Trump’s continued efforts to recast the events of the 2020 election, which he lost to Joe Biden.

The pardon also covers Republicans who acted as alternate electors for Trump in states won by Biden and who are facing state charges for submitting false certificates claiming they were duly appointed electors.

The proclamation described the prosecutions as “a grave national injustice perpetrated on the American people”.

It said the pardons were issued to continue “the process of national reconciliation”.(The Cable)