President Joe Biden, in contrast to his earlier pledge that he would not use his executive powers to guarantee freedom for his oldest-living child, Hunter Biden, has signed a pardon for him.
Justifying his stance, the President said the pardon was necessary because the case against his son was politically tinged, excessive and designed to “break” him and Hunter.
Recall that Biden and the White House have repeatedly said that the president would not pardon his son, who was found guilty of gun charges by a federal court in Delaware earlier this year, becoming the first child of a sitting US president to be convicted of crimes. His sentencing in that case was set for December, 12.
The White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre had said that Biden would never consider pardoning his son.
In a statement he issued while about exiting Africa, Biden said the allegations and court charges against Hunter came about only after several of his political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack him (Biden) and work against his election.
Biden disclosed that Hunter was singled out for the charges just to get at him.
Biden’s move is coming just weeks before he is set to leave office, paving the way for President-elect Donald Trump to assume power.
The President-elect has pardoned people close to him and has vowed to pardon those convicted of involvement in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol in his second term.
Trump pardoned Charles Kushner, his daughter Ivanka’s father-in-law, in his first term and nominated Kushner recently as US ambassador to France.
Reacting to Biden’s decision in a post Sunday on his Truth Social platform, Trump inquired whether the president’s pardon to Hunter would cover the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years.
Trump described the development as an abuse and miscarriage of justice.
The 54-year-old younger Biden had entered into a not-guilty plea in a separate felony tax case in September.
Hunter had appreciated his father’s clemency, promising to devote the life that he has “rebuilt” to assisting the sick and those suffering.
Hunter Biden’s legal team filed motions in courts in Delaware and Los Angeles, where he was subject to charges in a separate alleged tax evasion case, notifying them of the pardon and saying the cases must now be dismissed.
The president’s pardon covers not only criminal acts of which Hunter Biden has been convicted but other potential legal challenges that may await him.
Biden has signed “full and unconditional pardon” for his son, covering “those 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, including but not limited to all offenses charged or prosecuted.”
Hunter Biden’s lawyer Abbe Lowell did not immediately respond to requests for comment and the US Department of Justice’s special prosecutor David Weiss declined to comment.
