President Joe Biden had long pledged that he would not pardon his son, Hunter, who was set to be sentenced this month for gun and tax convictions. But on Sunday (Dec. 1), the president did it anyway.
The sweeping pardon covers Hunter Biden’s convictions in two cases in Delaware and California, per the Associated Press. It also covers any other “offenses against the United States which he has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 1, 2014, through December 1, 2024.”
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Here’s What President Biden Said About Hunter’s Pardon
Biden is not the first president to use his pardon powers to benefit someone close to him. But it was still a surprising reversal for a man who swore not to use his presidential power on Hunter.
For context, he assured the media of this in June. At the time, Biden ruled out a pardon or commutation for his son. He told reporters as his son faced trial in the Delaware gun case, “I abide by the jury decision. I will do that, and I will not pardon him.” Days after Donald Trump’s presidential victory, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre ruled out a pardon or clemency for Hunter Biden. “We’ve been asked that question multiple times. Our answer stands, which is no,” Jean-Pierre said on Nov. 8.
In a statement released Sunday evening, President Joe Biden said, “I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process, and it led to a miscarriage of justice.”
President Joe Biden has publicly stood by his only living son amid Hunter’s serious drug addiction. The famed son has gotten back on track in recent years. However, political rivals have consistently used Hunter’s mistakes as shade against his father. In one hearing, lawmakers displayed photos of Hunter half-naked and on drugs in a seedy hotel. House Republicans also tried to use the younger Biden’s years of overseas business ventures to impeach his father. The president has long denied involvement in his son’s dealings or benefiting from them in any way, and the impeachment attempts have been dropped.
“The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election,” Joe Biden said in his statement. “No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son.”
In closing, the president wrote, “I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision.” Swipe below to read his entire statement.
