President Joe Biden issued a full and unconditional pardon to his son, Hunter Biden, on Sunday, reversing his previous public commitment not to interfere in his son's legal proceedings. The pardon, announced in a White House statement, covers all offenses committed between January 1, 2014, and December 1, 2024, including those for which Hunter Biden was convicted. Josh Morgan / USA TODAY NETWORK
President Biden's statement acknowledged his earlier promise not to intervene, but he argued in an official statement that "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." Josh Morgan / USA TODAY NETWORK
The President further stated, "There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution. 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." The White House / Wikimedia
The pardon comes after Hunter Biden was convicted on federal gun charges in June for lying about his drug use when purchasing a weapon and after he plead guilty to tax offenses for failing to pay at least $1.4 million in federal taxes. Hunter Biden's sentencing was scheduled for later this month. These cases were prosecuted by Justice Department special counsel David Weiss. Jack Gruber / USA TODAY NETWORK
The move drew immediate criticism from figures like Steven Chung, former President Trump's communications director. Chung told Newsweek that "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," adding, "That system of justice must be fixed and due process must be restored for all Americans, which is exactly what President Trump will do as he returns to the White House with an overwhelming mandate from the American people." BruceSchaff / Wikimedia
President Biden defended his actions, stating, "For my entire career I have followed a simple principle: just tell the American people the truth. They'll be fair-minded." The White House / Wikimedia
He added, "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 – and once I made this decision this weekend, there was no sense in delaying it further. I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision." The White House / Wikimedia
NBC News broke the news of the pardon before the official White House statement. President Biden had previously stated in June that he would not interfere in his son's legal proceedings saying, "I will not pardon him" despite his son's conviction. The Biden White House / Wikimedia
Hunter Biden's legal challenges have long been viewed as a potential political vulnerability for his father, with Republicans often trying to use them to discredit the President. Hunter Biden acknowledged the political impact in a statement emailed to NPR, stating, "I have admitted and taken responsibility for my mistakes during the darkest days of my addiction — mistakes that have been exploited to publicly humiliate and shame me and my family for political sport." Jasper Colt / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Interestingly, former President Trump had previously stated that he would consider pardoning Hunter Biden, saying, “I wouldn’t take it off the books. … Hunter’s a bad boy, there’s no question about it. But I happen to think it’s very bad for our country...I could’ve gotten Hillary Clinton very easily... I could’ve had her put in jail.” Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia
