Joe Biden pardons son Hunter: What it means and why it matters
Biden has pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, who was facing sentencing for two criminal cases. Here is what we know.
US President Joe Biden has issued a pardon for his son, Hunter Biden, who was awaiting sentencing in two criminal cases involving tax evasion and illegal firearm purchase.
Here’s what we know about the case and the pardon:
Who is Hunter Biden and what are the charges against him?
Hunter Biden, the 54-year-old middle child of President Joe Biden, is the President's only surviving son and the first child of a sitting U.S. president to face criminal charges.
In his 2021 memoir, Hunter openly discussed his struggles with crack cocaine addiction and alcoholism, noting that he had sought treatment and achieved recovery.
He faced the prospect of significant federal prison time on multiple charges, including tax fraud and illegal gun possession.
In June, a jury convicted Hunter of illegally purchasing and possessing a firearm while using drugs. According to his lawyers, he owned the .38-caliber Colt Cobra Special for just 11 days and never fired it.
Months later, in September, Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to charges related to a scheme to evade paying over $1.4 million in taxes.
Hunter Biden faced a potential 17-year prison sentence for tax-related charges and up to 25 years for the gun charges. However, he was widely expected to receive a lighter sentence, with the possibility of avoiding prison time altogether.
His sentencing was scheduled for December 12 in Delaware for the gun charges and December 16 in California for the tax charges.
But didn’t Joe Biden say he wouldn’t pardon Hunter?
Indeed.
President Biden said he would not pardon or commute his son Hunter's sentence in June. "I abide by the jury's decision. I will do that, and I will not pardon him," he said as Hunter faced trial in the Delaware gun case.
Similarly, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated on multiple occasions—at least seven times over a year—that the President would not pardon his son.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre answers questions during the news briefing at the White House
During this year's presidential race against former President Donald Trump, who faces multiple criminal charges, President Biden sought to draw a clear contrast between himself and the real estate mogul-turned-politician.
In early July, Biden took to X to assert, "No one is above the law," appearing to criticize a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that granted Trump broad immunity for legal violations committed during his presidency.
On Sunday, the White House issued a statement announcing President Biden's decision to grant executive clemency to his son, Hunter Biden.
President Biden explained his decision as a response to what he characterized as a politically motivated effort by his opponents to harm his reputation.
“The charges against Hunter arose only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them as a means to attack me and challenge my election,” Biden stated.
He continued, “No reasonable person who examines the facts of Hunter’s cases can conclude anything other than that he was singled out solely because he is my son—and that is wrong.”
Biden also underscored his faith in the justice system while expressing concerns about political interference. “I believe in the justice system, but I also believe that raw politics infected this process, leading to a miscarriage of justice. … I hope Americans understand why, as both a father and a President, I came to this decision.”
In a statement, Hunter Biden expressed gratitude, vowing never to take the reprieve "for granted."
"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 gain," he said.
"I will never take the clemency I received today for granted and will dedicate my rebuilt life to helping those who are still struggling and suffering."
What does a pardon do?
The U.S. Constitution grants the president the authority to grant clemency, encompassing pardons, amnesty, commutations, and reprieves.
A pardon fully absolves individuals of federal criminal offenses and restores their civil liberties and rights. A commutation, on the other hand, reduces penalties without entirely eliminating them. Amnesty functions similarly to a pardon but applies to a group of individuals rather than a single person.
This power traces its origins to English law, where the king could grant mercy to individuals. It later made its way across the Atlantic to the American colonies and is now commonly exercised by U.S. presidents.
How common is it for presidents to pardon family members?
It is not unusual for U.S. presidents to use their clemency power to pardon or commute the sentence of a family member.
In the final weeks of his presidency in 2021, Donald Trump granted about 100 pardons and commutations. One of those pardons was for Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
In 2005, Kushner was sentenced to two years in prison for tax evasion, illegal campaign donations, and witness tampering. By 2024, Trump had nominated Charles Kushner to serve as U.S. ambassador to France in the incoming administration.
Similarly, former President Bill Clinton pardoned his half-brother, Roger Clinton, before leaving office. Roger Clinton Jr. had been convicted in 1985 on a cocaine-related charge and sentenced to over a year in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute.
Is this significant?
Analysts suggest that this pardon could undermine the credibility of the U.S. democratic system and the idea that the law applies equally to all.
“Now that the election is over and Joe Biden has no more races to run, what we’re seeing is a father who is steadfastly looking out for his son,” political analyst Eric Ham told Al Jazeera.
“This will likely remain a lingering issue that many will focus on, and I expect there will be increased scrutiny on any pardons Biden grants as he exits office. But more broadly, it raises a much larger question about where the U.S. stands as a nation of laws,” he added.
Experts also suggest that this decision places the U.S. in a difficult position on the global stage.
“It’s going to be very challenging for the U.S. as it tries to pressure other nations, including China, Russia, and North Korea,” said Eric Ham.
“I think it blurs the lines, making it harder for the U.S. to make its case. When you consider actions taken by both Biden and Donald Trump—who campaigned on pardoning January 6th insurrectionists—it weakens the U.S.'s argument moving forward,” he explained.
“The law seems to only apply to certain people, or it doesn’t apply at all,” Ham added.
Is this similar to what Trump has said or done before?
Both Biden and Trump have claimed that the Department of Justice has been politically influenced.
Biden argued that the case against his son was part of an effort to attack him and undermine his election, while Trump has contended that the justice system has been weaponized against him, portraying himself as a victim of prosecution.
After Biden announced the pardon for Hunter, Trump criticized the decision as an abuse of justice.
“Does the pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years?” Trump posted on social media, referring to the rioters accused of attacking the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
“Such an abuse and miscarriage of justice!” he added.
Trump's supporters stormed the Capitol after he delivered a fiery speech urging the crowd to “fight like hell” in an attempt to stop Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 election, which Trump lost to Biden.
How have others reacted?
Republican Iowa Senator Charles E. Grassley expressed on social media that he was "shocked" by the president's decision to pardon his son, stating, "He said many, many times he wouldn’t, and I believed him. Shame on me."
In a separate post on X, Greg Stanton, the Democratic representative from Arizona, wrote: “I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong. This wasn’t a politically motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies and was convicted by a jury of his peers.”
"Joe Biden is a liar and a hypocrite, all the way to the end," said Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Republican congresswoman from Georgia.
However, others supported Biden’s decision, arguing that Hunter had been treated unfairly. Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder took to X, stating that the pardon was "warranted."
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