President Biden was always going to pardon Hunter

Joe Biden’s whole presidency has been built on untruths. We were led to believe, for instance, that since 2021 the commander-in-chief has been fit and well enough to serve, when everybody could see that he was not. 

So the latest proof-of-dishonesty over the pardoning of Hunter Biden comes as no great surprise. Of course, Joe was going to grant clemency to his errant and only living son. He just pretended he wouldn’t all year for electoral reasons.

The maudlin love of the father used to dress up the presidential deceit

“I believe in the justice system,” said the president in a statement. “But as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice.”

“I hope Americans will understand why a father and a president would come to this decision,” Biden said in his statement.

There it is. The maudlin love of the father used to dress up the presidential deceit. Joe and Jill repeatedly made out that, in contrast to Donald Trump, their respect for the justice system meant they wouldn’t use his presidential power to pardon Hunter. But now they have nothing to lose. 

The “raw politics” Biden is referring to is not just the Republican efforts to prosecute Hunter; rather Joe’s own politicking led him to stand aside as the wheels of justice ground against his son. It’s worth remembering that Hunter was initially let off with a judicial slap on the wrist. Then, as the Democratic-led lawfare campaign against Donald Trump started to backfire politically, the Department of Justice suddenly did charge Hunter over three felony counts relating to his purchase of a handgun in 2018. 

The surprising part about the pardon is its timing. Why did Biden announce the news this weekend, rather than waiting for January to let his loved-one off-the-hook, as is customary for presidents vacating the White House? “Once I made this decision this weekend, there was no sense in delaying it further,” says Biden. But nobody quite believes that. 

Did Joe think that Americans would be in a forgiving mood on Thanksgiving? Or is his health in such precipitous decline that he felt necessary to pardon his son now before it’s too late? 

Is the Biden presidency, in fact, likely to end before Inauguration Day on January 20, 2025? In that case, might Kamala Harris become the first female US president after all, albeit only for a few days?  That may sound outlandish. Never put anything past the Democrats, though.  

It’s also interesting that Trump has not directly attacked his rival for his “full and unconditional” pardon of his son. On his Truth Social platform last night, the Donald posted: 

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!

That suggests Trump may use his executive power to grant clemency to the many Americans who have been pursued by Biden’s Department of Justice over the disorder on Capitol Hill on January 6, 2021. 

But it also looks as if Trump, having had a fairly amicable-looking meeting with Biden in the White House after his election victory last month, is willing to let the murky Hunter story fade away.