Biden grants full, unconditional pardon to son, Hunter
WASHINGTON—US President Joe Biden on Sunday went back on his word to stay out of legal proceedings against his son and announced that he had pardoned Hunter, who pleaded guilty to tax violations and was convicted on firearms-related charges.
“Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter. From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,” the president said in a statement.
Hunter was prosecuted by Biden’s Justice Department. He was tried and convicted for gun charges by a federal jury in their hometown of Delaware during his father’s administration.
The White House had said repeatedly that Biden would not pardon or commute sentences for Hunter, a recovering drug addict.
The grant of clemency said Biden had granted “a full and unconditional” pardon to Hunter Biden for any offenses in a window from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 1, 2024.
Hunter Biden faced sentencing for the false statements and gun convictions this month. In September he pleaded guilty to federal charges of failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes while spending lavishly on drugs, sex workers and luxury items. He was scheduled for sentencing in that case on Dec. 16.
“I have admitted and taken responsibility for my mistakes during the darkest days of my addiction,” Hunter Biden said in a statement on Sunday, adding he had remained sober for more than five years.
‘Influence peddling’
“I will never take the clemency I have been given today for granted and will devote the life I have rebuilt to helping those who are still sick and suffering.”
Republicans criticized the president’s move.
“Does the Pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years? Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!”
Trump said in a post on his Truth Social site, referring to those convicted for storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, after Trump claimed that he had won the 2020 election.
“Joe Biden has lied from start to finish about his family’s corrupt influence peddling activities,” said Representative James Comer, chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.
The president said his opponents had sought to break Hunter with selective prosecution.
“It is clear that Hunter was treated differently. 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,” Biden said. “In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me—and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough.”
Hunter’s prosecution was headed by David Weiss, who was appointed special counsel to the case by Biden’s Justice Secretary Merrick Garland.
‘Evenhanded’ manner
During the appointment, Garland expressed confidence that “Weiss will carry out his responsibility in an even handed and urgent manner and in accordance with the highest traditions of this department.”
Biden said he had made his decision to pardon over the weekend. The president, his wife, Jill Biden, and their family including Hunter, spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Nantucket, Massachusetts, and returned to Washington on Saturday night.
“Here’s the truth: 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,” Biden said.
“I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision.”
