WASHINGTON — On Sunday night, President Joe Biden granted a pardon to his son, Hunter Biden, eliminating the risk of a prison sentence stemming from federal felony convictions related to gun possession and tax issues. This decision marks a significant departure from Biden’s earlier commitments to refrain from using presidential powers to benefit his family.
Previously, President Biden had explicitly stated that he would not issue a pardon for Hunter following his convictions in Delaware and California. The timing of this pardon is notable, occurring just weeks before Hunter was scheduled to face sentencing for his gun conviction and tax-related guilty plea, and less than two months ahead of Donald Trump’s anticipated return to the White House.
This development concludes a prolonged legal battle for Hunter Biden, who publicly revealed he was under federal scrutiny back in December 2020, shortly after his father’s election victory. The situation casts a shadow over President Biden’s legacy, as he had repeatedly promised to restore norms and uphold the rule of law after the tumultuous Trump administration.
In his statement on Sunday evening, President Biden remarked, “I have faith in the justice system, but I also believe that raw politics have tainted this process, leading to a miscarriage of justice.”
The pardon issued by the President not only addresses the gun and tax charges against Hunter but also encompasses any other offenses against the United States that he may have committed during the period from January 1, 2014, to December 1, 2024.
In June, Biden had firmly ruled out the possibility of pardoning his son, stating to reporters, “I respect the jury’s decision. I will adhere to that and will not grant him a pardon.”
As recently as November 8, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated that no pardon or clemency would be granted to Hunter Biden, emphasizing, “We have consistently answered that question with a firm no.”
Throughout Hunter’s struggles with severe addiction and the turmoil it caused within the family, President Biden has publicly supported his only surviving son. Political adversaries have often weaponized Hunter Biden’s past issues against the President, even showcasing compromising images during congressional hearings.
House Republicans have also attempted to use Hunter’s controversial overseas business dealings in a failed effort to impeach President Biden, who has consistently denied any involvement or benefit from his son’s actions.
Biden stated, “The charges against Hunter emerged only after several of my political opponents in Congress urged them to undermine me and obstruct my election.” He continued, “No reasonable observer can look at the facts surrounding Hunter’s cases and conclude anything other than that he was targeted solely because he is my son.”
“I hope that the American public can understand why a father and a President would arrive at this decision,” Biden said, noting that he made the choice over the weekend.
The President had been spending the Thanksgiving holiday with Hunter and his family in Nantucket, Massachusetts, before preparing for a trip to Angola, which may be one of his last international excursions as President before his term ends on January 20, 2025.
Hunter Biden was convicted in June in Delaware federal court of three felonies related to a gun purchase in 2018, during which he allegedly lied on a federal form about his drug use and addiction.
He was scheduled to face trial in September in California for allegedly failing to pay over $1.4 million in taxes. However, he unexpectedly agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor and felony charges just hours before jury selection was to begin.
David Weiss, the U.S. attorney appointed by Trump who negotiated Hunter’s plea deal, was later designated as special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland to oversee the prosecution independently.
Hunter Biden stated that his plea was intended to protect his family from further distress and humiliation following the public revelations regarding his struggles with crack cocaine addiction during the gun trial.
The tax charges could have resulted in up to 17 years in prison, while the gun charges carried a potential sentence of 25 years. However, federal guidelines suggested that he might have faced significantly less time and could possibly have avoided prison altogether.
Hunter was due for sentencing this month in both federal cases, which arose after a plea agreement initially proposed to spare him from prison time unraveled under judicial scrutiny. Under that original deal, he was supposed to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax offenses and avoid prosecution for the gun case, provided he remained trouble-free for two years.
However, complications arose when the judge expressed concerns about the unusual terms of the deal, leading to Hunter’s subsequent indictment on both counts.
Over the weekend, Hunter Biden’s legal team released a comprehensive 52-page document titled “The Political Prosecutions of Hunter Biden,” portraying him as a pawn used to undermine his father’s political standing during the 2020 election and beyond.
Hunter’s attorneys have consistently claimed that the indictments were motivated by political pressure from Republicans, particularly in light of criticism surrounding the alleged leniency of the initial plea deal.
Rep. James Comer, a leading Republican investigator into the Biden family, condemned the President’s pardon, asserting that the evidence against Hunter represents merely “the tip of the iceberg.”
“It’s regrettable that instead of addressing their long history of wrongdoing, President Biden and his family continue to evade accountability,” Comer remarked on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Biden is not the first President to utilize his pardon authority for the benefit of those close to him. In his final weeks in office, Trump pardoned Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law Jared Kushner, along with several associates implicated in the Russia investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller. Trump also indicated plans to nominate the elder Kushner as U.S. envoy to France in his next administration.
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Trump, who has pledged to enact significant changes and appoint loyalists throughout the Justice Department following his own legal troubles, denounced Hunter Biden’s pardon as “a profound abuse and miscarriage of justice” in a recent social media post.
“Does the pardon granted by Joe to Hunter also apply to the January 6 hostages, who have been imprisoned for years?” Trump questioned, referencing those convicted following the violent January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
In response to the pardon, Hunter Biden expressed gratitude for the relief granted to him and committed to dedicating his newly rebuilt life to assisting those who continue to struggle.
“I have acknowledged and taken responsibility for my past mistakes during the darkest moments of my addiction—mistakes that have been exploited to publicly humiliate and shame me and my family for political gain,” Hunter stated.
Following the pardon, Hunter Biden’s legal team filed motions in both Los Angeles and Delaware, requesting that the judges handling his gun and tax cases dismiss them based on the newly granted pardon.
A spokesperson for U.S. Attorney Weiss did not respond to requests for comment on Sunday night.
NBC News was the first to report that President Biden was expected to announce his son’s pardon on Sunday.
—Associated Press writer Josh Boak contributed to this report from Nantucket, Massachusetts.
