X A V I Posted December 5, 2024 Posted December 5, 2024 President Joe Biden made history Sunday when he granted a pardon to his son Hunter Biden for criminal convictions on gun and tax charges. The power to grant pardons for federal crimes is uniquely bestowed by the Constitution on only the US president: “… he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.” Presidents have doled out pardons to friends and donors, to political allies, and to make political points, but no president until Biden has pardoned his son. In a statement, Biden argued his son’s criminal cases “came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election.” He argued Hunter Biden faced prosecution — in particular for the sole charge of lying on a form required to buy a handgun — only because he was the president’s son. Certainly Republicans have long tried to tie Hunter Biden’s lucrative business career to his father. And don’t forget, it was then-President Donald Trump’s attempt to get Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden’s ties to a natural gas company that led to his first impeachment. Hunter Biden’s personal struggle with addiction and his business career, built on his father’s name, have clearly been political liabilities for Joe Biden. The federal investigation into Hunter Biden has been a yearslong event; it began in 2018 during the Trump presidency and continued throughout Joe Biden’s administration. With the pardon, Biden broke a clear public promise not to interfere with the justice system on his son’s behalf, something that will now stain his presidential legacy. Only two other presidents have pardoned family members, according to Alexis Coe, author of “You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington.” ► Bill Clinton pardoned his half-brother Roger for drug charges. ► Trump pardoned his son-in-law’s father, Charles Kushner, who had been convicted of witness tampering, tax evasion and illegal campaign contributions. Kushner is now in line to be US ambassador to France. Coe wrote for CNN in 2023 about the long list of presidential sons, in particular, causing problems for their fathers. She told me the framers did not anticipate the pardon power being used for close relations. https://edition.cnn.com/2024/12/01/politics/joe-biden-presidential-history-pardon/index.html?iid=cnn_buildContentRecirc_end_recirc
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