Hunter Biden won't get pardon from father, White House insists
WASHINGTON — White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was forced Thursday to rule out President Biden handing a pardon to his son Hunter.
As recently as Monday, the administration’s chief spokesperson had insisted the president was “never in business with his son” and said Wednesday that “nothing has changed.”
But scrutiny from the media and Republicans intensified after Hunter’s probation-only plea deal on tax and gun charges collapsed under scrutiny by a federal judge in Delaware, who raised questions about promises of near-blanket immunity extracted from federal prosecutors as part of the agreement.
“Is there any possibility that the president would end up pardoning his son?” Fox News reporter Mark Meredith asked Jean-Pierre during her regular briefing.
“No,” the press secretary said flatly and firmly.
When Meredith attempted to ask a follow-up question, Jean-Pierre added, “I just said no — I just answered” and called on a different journalist.
Hunter Biden’s plea deal to two tax misdemeanors and a gun possession felony would have been expunged after two years. REUTERS
The Constitution grants presidents nearly unchecked power to pardon federal crimes — meaning that Biden, 80, could effectively end the turbulent years-long criminal case involving his son, 53, with the stroke of a pen.
However, such a decision would ignite intense political blowback.
The only president known to have pardoned an immediate family member convicted of a crime is Bill Clinton, who in his final hours before leaving office in January 2001 expunged his younger half-brother Roger’s mid-1980s conviction on a charge of conspiring to distribute cocaine.
In December 2020, former President Donald Trump pardoned New Jersey real estate developer Charles Kushner 15 years after his conviction on charges including illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion and witness tampering. Kushner’s son Jared is married to Trump’s oldest daughter, Ivanka.
Karine Jean-Pierre said that President Biden will not pardon Hunter. AFP via Getty Images
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) made tentative remarks this week about launching an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden’s role in his son’s foreign business dealings in countries such as China and Ukraine.
Later in the briefing, Jean-Pierre claimed in response to a question from Salon reporter Brian Karem that Hunter didn’t receive “favorable treatment” from his dad’s Justice Department.
But two IRS whistleblowers said Biden-appointed US attorneys in Los Angeles and Washington, DC blocked charges against the first son, leading to what assistant US attorney Leo Wise repeatedly admitted in court Wednesday was an unprecedented plea deal.
Follow The Post’s latest coverage on Hunter Biden’s plea deal
Judge Maryellen Noreika nixed Hunter’s plea deal in a Delaware court on Thursday. U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware
“The Department of Justice is independent, the president respects the rule of law, [Biden’s] been saying that since he was before [sic] president and that will remain the case,” Jean-Pierre insisted.
Joe Biden repeatedly interacted with his son’s foreign business partners — including from China, Mexico, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine.
One of Hunter’s closest American associates, Devon Archer, is expected to testify to the House Oversight Committee Monday and explain that Hunter regularly put his then-vice president dad on speaker phone during meetings with his foreign partners.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has already made tentative remarks this week about launching an impeachment inquiry into President Biden’s role in his son’s foreign business dealings. Gripas Yuri/ABACA/Shutterstock
Hunter’s plea deal to two tax misdemeanors and a gun possession felony would have been expunged after two years.
But US District Judge Maryellen Noreika rejected Hunter’s plea deal on Wednesday after it became clear that the first son’s lawyers and the Justice Department held starkly different views on whether the deal would prevent the feds from charging Hunter with other past crimes, such as allegedly violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
Hunter then pleaded not guilty to the charges before the hearing adjourned.
The sides will appear again in court in 30 days to discuss next steps.
Source: New York Post
