Hunter Biden’s Pardon Puts a Spotlight On Presidents Biden's Ruling

Breaking the fire on Sunday, President Biden announced the issuance of a presidential pardon directed at his Son Hunter Biden (54), tying the reasoning to being “politically motivated” against Hunter.

Several federal cases, with the most notable being one for gun charges developing after lying about his drug use when purchasing a handgun, found guilty by a jury in Delaware, in 2018. To be exact a .38-caliber Colt Cobra Edition. The other set of federal cases was accepted by Judge Mark C. Scarsi after Hunter pled guilty of tax evasion for tax years 2016–2019, and evading the assessment of his 2018 taxes.

Manuel Balce Ceneta / Associated Press

As soon as word got of the pardon, media was quick to answer, including statements from President-elect Donald Trump, the current statement being mentioned being “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.” The statement being made on Truth Social, a social media platform owned by Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG). 

The statement has raised attraction towards the social media platform, visible in Google Trends, with a high spike in the range of December 3. 

When it comes to pardons, there is a significant margin between pardons given by previous presidents, President Biden sitting at only 26 pardons. Comparing this to the 237 pardons President-elect Trump gave while in office, and the 1927 pardons Ex-President Barack Obama granted. 

The pardon becomes more emphasized due to the timing of it’s granting, during the 2024 election, information on Hunter Biden was being pushed as a weak link connected to the Democratic Party. The Republican Party was quick to identify how President Biden would interpret Hunter towards his personal integrity, having his Vice President Kamala Harris running for office meant the situation would escalate to the direct link of Hunter to the Democratic Party.

One of the strongest segments in President Biden’s official statement release was the quote, 

“I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision.”

Additionally, Hunter's business dealings, especially his role in Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, raised questions of potential influence peddling, leaving the situation without pressed charges

His personal life, including struggles with drug addiction, has also attracted significant public and media attention. Over time Hunter has criticized for bringing negative light to the Biden Family, Since then, there have been press releases about President Biden visiting Angola, Central Africa meeting with President João Lourenço. 

AFP via Getty Images

With an already battered Democratic Party, President Biden still resides in the seat of power, with a couple weeks left in 2024 the criticism built around questions on what other changes will occur develop skepticism of, the 46th U.S. is currently under the eye of the storm. Images surfaced during President Biden's visit to Angola, adding more fuel to the already growing criticism over his public image.