On Sunday, Dec. 1, President Joe Biden pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, for all his felonies. This action has cleansed H. Biden of any sentences he would be receiving in the oncoming weeks, the timing matching up perfectly with the amount of time J. Biden has left in office. The reason this pardon was even required lies in H. Biden’s crimes, which he was tried on in September, 2024. USA Today states that his charges included lying on a federal screening that regarded drug use, lying to a gun dealer, and having a gun despite the restrictions on drug addicts owning firearms. He also pleaded guilty to six misdemeanors and three felonies, due to his failure to pay $1.4 million in taxes. All of these events happened from 2016 to 2019, and all are covered by the pardon. According to USA Today, J. Biden has released a statement regarding the pardoning, saying that “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… it is clear that Hunter was treated differently.” It is apparent that he is trying to provide some justification for his decision, however it is still not settling well in the eyes of others.
Biden had made multiple claims that he wanted to restore the independence of the Department of Justice (DOJ), and stated that he would never pardon his son, so this action will likely stain his credibility in the political scene. According to CNN, Pardoning H. Biden has given Republicans a window to make assertions about the current president’s politicization of the justice system. Also, Republicans have been attempting to cause further damage to the president by bringing congress into the matter, however these attempts deflated due to lack of evidence. Although these claims may not be true, they still have weight politically regarding J. Biden’s legacy. More statements on CNN made by J. Biden have detailed how his role as a father triumphs in this situation, asking “Americans to judge him as a father,” despite his previous promises. Asking the public to show this mercy is bringing a certain moral compass into the situation, considering a father and son relationship aside from political standing. However, this is a political standing no matter the tactic used, and will likely have a negative effect on J. Biden’s legacy.
In this situation, it would generally work to undermine one president to build up another. However, it is still considered that Republican President-elect Donald Trump does not have the moral high ground in this situation. During his presidency, Trump dealt out multiple political pardons. CNN gives some examples, including the case of Charles Kushner. Kushner is Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump’s, father-in-law. He committed tax evasion and had one count of “retaliating against a federal witness.” Other examples include Roger Stone, one of his frequent fixers, and Paul Manfort, who was a 2016 campaign chairman. Trump is generally known to give pardons to people within his family’s inner circle. In combination with these pardons, CNN states that Trump’s campaign ties to the DOJ and FBI were even contradicted when he was investigated for the possession of classified documents. Reflecting on this, the Republican retaliation against J. Biden’s actions cannot be backed up by their own presidential representative as Trump himself has been put under the eye of the DOJ in other circumstances.
While both J. Biden and Trump are being analyzed by the public, it is impossible to deny what either of them have done. Each claim made about the other tends to be revealed as a true parallel between the two instead of new ammunition. After this sudden pardon of H. Biden, however, it is apparent that some trust will need to be earned back by the current president before he steps out of office.
