Biden’s Move To Pardon Son Hunter Draws Scathing Rebukes From Fellow Liberals, Never-Trumpers

President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden on Sunday evening drew some criticism from fellow liberals and outspoken opponents of President-elect Donald Trump.

Biden previously said he would not commute his son’s sentence for knowingly possessing a gun while suffering a drug addiction and making false statements on the purchasing documents. The president backpedaled by issuing a statement pardoning Hunter Biden, writing Sunday that his son was targeted by the judicial process due to their familial relationship.

Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said he was disappointed in Biden, saying he sullied his legacy by putting “his family ahead of the country.”

While as a father I certainly understand President @JoeBiden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country. This is a bad precedent that could be abused by later Presidents and will sadly tarnish his reputation.…

— Jared Polis (@jaredpolis) December 2, 2024

“While as a father I certainly understand President @JoeBiden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country,” Polis wrote on Twitter. “This is a bad precedent that could be abused by later Presidents and will sadly tarnish his reputation. When you become President, your role is Pater familias of the nation. Hunter brought the legal trouble he faced on himself, and one can sympathize with his struggles while also acknowledging that no one is above the law, not a President and not a President’s son.”

Former Republican Illinois Rep. Joe Walsh, who ran against Trump in 2020 and is now an Independent, raged against Biden’s “stupidly selfish” decision to pardon his son.

This is utter bullshit, just plain wrong, & stupidly selfish. Shame on you @POTUS, you’ve given Trump license now to dole out favors to his family & wealthy friends. And when he does, you’ve given his supporters the opportunity to say “everyone does it.” And btw Biden, you lied. https://t.co/cNTywS8Dxm

— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) December 2, 2024

“This is utter bullshit, just plain wrong, & stupidly selfish. Shame on you @POTUS, you’ve given Trump license now to dole out favors to his family & wealthy friends. And when he does, you’ve given his supporters the opportunity to say ‘everyone does it,’” Walsh wrote. “And btw Biden, you lied.”

Democratic Arizona Rep. Greg Stanton insisted that Biden made the wrong choice, reminding social media users that Hunter Biden, who he said committed felonies, was convicted by a lawful jury.

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. https://t.co/P31d4ILL1P

— Rep. Greg Stanton (@RepGregStanton) December 2, 2024

“I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong,” Stanton wrote. “This wasn’t a politically-motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies, and was convicted by a jury of his peers.”

Statistician Nate Silver slammed Biden for “kicking salt in the wound” of the Democratic Party’s loss to Trump for his second term. (RELATED: Here Are The Times Biden, KJP Promised President Wouldn’t Pardon Hunter Before Breaking His Word)

The White House consistently lied about this. Biden’s stubborn insistence on running for reelection was perhaps the singular most important factor in Trump 2.0, and now he’s kicking salt in the wound of the party brand he helped to destroy.https://t.co/7sQi2uNNLy https://t.co/lAwX6QNcqa

— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) December 2, 2024

“The White House consistently lied about this. Biden’s stubborn insistence on running for reelection was perhaps the singular most important factor in Trump 2.0, and now he’s kicking salt in the wound of the party brand he helped to destroy,” Silver wrote.

Journalist Glenn Greenwald reposted a nine-minute montage of CNN and MSNBC hosts and pundits insisting Biden would never pardon his son, calling them a “mindless herd.”

9 straight minutes of the people who destroyed trust in media heralding Joe Biden as one of history’s greatest men of honor for saying he would not pardon Hunter Biden.

Beyond the extreme ignorance needed to have believed Biden, look how these people operate as a mindless herd: https://t.co/eGwBulE07U

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) December 2, 2024

“9 straight minutes of the people who destroyed trust in media heralding Joe Biden as one of history’s greatest men of honor for saying he would not pardon Hunter Biden,” Greenwald wrote. “Beyond the extreme ignorance needed to have believed Biden, look how these people operate as a mindless herd.”

Former Bill and Hillary Clinton adviser Mark Penn blasted Biden’s “disgraceful pardon” as one among many of the Biden administration’s lies.

“This was not a pardon of just Hunter Biden but of Joe Biden himself as his son ran a scheme with Joe’s brother to shakedown adversaries of over $20 million and then didn’t even pay taxes on it. And the loot was distributed even to grand children,” Penn wrote. “And this is yet another of the many issues the American public was shamefully gaslighted over.”

Disgraceful Pardon

This was not a pardon of just Hunter Biden but of Joe Biden himself as his son ran a scheme with Joe’s brother to shakedown adversaries of over $20 million and then didn’t even pay taxes on it. And the loot was distributed even to grand children.

And this is…

— Mark Penn (@Mark_Penn) December 2, 2024

“Biden of course falsely claimed he would not pardon his son, and so what else was Biden falsely saying before the election that he would have done had he been elected?” he continued. “We will never know but we sure can guess …”

Ezra Klein, a columnist for The New York Times, called Biden’s pardon of his son “terrible politics and precedent,” but empathized with the president’s decision.

It’s terrible politics and precedent but I’m going to be honest and say that the Trump team has been brutally clear they want revenge on their enemies, they are obsessed with Hunter in particular, and that would weigh like hell on me if I were his father and could protect him.

— Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) December 2, 2024

“It’s terrible politics and precedent but I’m going to be honest and say that the Trump team has been brutally clear they want revenge on their enemies, they are obsessed with Hunter in particular, and that would weigh like hell on me if I were his father and could protect him,” he wrote.

Former CNN political analyst Chris Cillizza torched Biden’s blame of a politicized Department of Justice (DOJ), warning that Trump supporters will weaponize the Democrat president’s comments to justify major reforms.

A colossally selfish decision that will allow every Trump supporter to note that Democrats say one thing and do another https://t.co/vvQ8GkC14l

— Chris Cillizza (@ChrisCillizza) December 2, 2024

“A colossally selfish decision that will allow every Trump supporter to note that Democrats say one thing and do another,” Cillizza wrote.