Trump pardons Giuliani, Meadows and others over plot to steal 2020 election | Richard Luscombe/The Guardian

Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows, both close former political allies of Donald Trump, are among scores of people pardoned by the president over the weekend for their roles in a plot to steal the 2020 election. The maneuver is in effect symbolic, given it only applies in the federal justice system and not in state courts, where Giuliani, Meadows and the others continue facing legal peril. The acts of clemency were announced in a post late on Sunday to X by US pardon attorney Ed Martin, covers 77 people said to have been the architects and agents of the scheme to install fake Republican electors in several battleground states, which would have falsely declared Trump their winner instead of the actual victor: Joe Biden. Those pardoned include Giuliani and Sidney Powell, former lawyers to Trump, and Meadows, who acted as White House chief of staff during his first term of office. Other prominent names include Jenna Ellis and John Eastman, attorneys who advised Trump during and immediately after the election that Biden won to interrupt Trump’s two terms. Read Article

One Year to Defend Elections | Michael Waldman/Brennan Center for Justice

On Monday, President Trump pardoned Rudy Giuliani and dozens of others who participated in the effort to overturn the 2020 election. It’s worth remembering exactly what they tried to do: Among those pardoned are the orchestrators of the so-called “fake electors” scheme — the attempt to replace certain states’ representatives in the Electoral College with Trump allies to certify false election results. If successful, it would have ended our country’s history of free and fair elections. Although the recipients can still face state prosecution, these acts of clemency — like the pardons of the January 6 insurrectionists — send a clear message: If you try to steal an election for his team, Donald Trump will have your back. In the states that voted last week, turnout was high and largely without incident, showing the resilience of America’s election system even at a moment of high tension. Next come the midterm elections a year from now, with control of Congress and many statehouses in the balance. Read Article