In an interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra expressed his regret regarding the possibility of President Joe Biden issuing preemptive pardons.

President Biden's decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden late last year spurred speculation that the president may issue preemptive pardons for allies in advance of the incoming Trump administration, as Fox News reported.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), who supervised the nation's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney have been suggested as potential recipients.

President Biden told USA Today on Sunday that he has not ruled out preemptive pardons, and that his decisions will be influenced by "who [President-elect Donald Trump] puts in what positions."

From the HHS Head

Such a decision, according to Becerra, could potentially set a dangerous precedent for the future.

“It sinks my heart to think that we’re going to use the pardon process in a way that will follow the whims of whoever’s in the White House,” he told The New York Times.

“I think we should hold that power, that only a president has, in very high regard, because otherwise it becomes pedestrian, and it’s used anywhere, and I don’t think that should be the case.”

Becerra also stated that he was "speaking more as a former attorney general than as a secretary or a cabinet member." From 2017 to 2021, the Health and Human Services secretary was the attorney general of California.

On Fauci

Becerra referred to Fauci as "one of the greatest contributors to modern health care in this country" and stated that he "deserves to be sainted for everything he did."

However, when The New York Times inquired whether he opposed a preemptive pardon for Fauci, the secretary responded,  "I won’t try to interpret what you’re hearing; I just told you what I think."

Additionally, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., expressed her deep "concern" regarding President Biden's prospective pardons in December.

“I am not a fan of these,” she said in an interview on MSNBC. “I didn’t like the pardon of the president’s son. I didn't think that that was prudent, but I also am very concerned about this idea of the preemptive pardons.”

White House Dodge

When queried by a reporter in December whether the White House would issue preemptive pardons to Fauci and Cheney, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to provide a definitive response.

“It would be a bad move on my behalf if I preempted the president or previewed anything that the president was thinking about considering and so, this is something he is going to talk with his team about and I just don’t have anything beyond that for you,” she said.