President Joe Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter Biden has thrown the Republican Party into an uproar, exposing what critics have called brazen hypocrisy within the GOP.
Hunter Biden, who was convicted on federal gun charges for lying about his drug use on a federal form when purchasing a firearm in 2018, had been scheduled for sentencing on Dec. 12. He also pleaded guilty to federal tax evasion charges in September, with sentencing in that case scheduled for Dec. 16.
But the White House announced Sunday that the president had granted his son a “full and unconditional pardon,” covering all potential offenses spanning from January 2014 to December 2024.
Biden justified the pardon as a response to politically motivated attacks, while Republicans, many of whom have stood by President-elect Donald Trump despite his extensive legal troubles, unleashed their fury.
Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung accused Biden of undermining justice.
“The failed witch hunts against President Trump have proven that the Democrat-controlled DOJ and other radical prosecutors are guilty of weaponizing the justice system,” Cheung said. “That system of justice must be fixed, and due process must be restored for all Americans.”
Trump, a 34-time convicted felon who has promised to pardon Jan. 6, 2021, rioters, wasted no time weighing in on Biden’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 posted on Truth Social.
Despite criticism, Trump also selected former Rep. Matt Gaetz as head of the DOJ despite the Florida lawmaker’s myriads of legal woes that include allegations of statutory rape.
In trying to push Gaetz’s ultimately abandoned candidacy through, Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene proclaimed last month that there are many Republicans with criminal skeletons in their closets.
Despite Trump’s 91 criminal charges, 34 convictions, adjudicated sexual assault civil conviction, and civil liabilities, Republican leaders took aim at Biden. Rep. Andy Biggs (R) of Arizona declared on X, “Biden will go down as one of the most corrupt presidents in American history.”
Republican Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, who chairs the House Oversight Committee and has made Hunter Biden a central focus of his investigations, accused Biden of shielding his family from accountability.
“Rather than come clean about their decades of wrongdoing, President Biden and his family continue to do everything they can to avoid accountability,” Comer wrote on X.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) of Iowa expressed regret, stating, “I’m shocked [President] Biden pardoned his son Hunter because he said many times he wouldn’t and I believed him. Shame on me.”
Sen. Tom Cotton (R) of Arkansas claimed the decision would erode public trust in the justice system, even as Trump’s legal troubles remain unprecedented.
In his statement, Biden pointed to what he called “raw politics” driving his son’s prosecution.
“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 — and that is wrong,” Biden said.
He went on to describe the toll the years-long attacks have taken on his family.
“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,” Biden declared.
Hypocritical is the president-elect being a convicted felon 34 counts! Hypocritical is charges being dismissed against Trump in serious court cases because he was elected as POTUS, he’s above the law