US President, Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he had granted his son, Hunter Biden, a full and unconditional pardon.
Hunter, who had been awaiting sentencing for federal tax and firearm charges, will now avoid any prison time. The decision has sparked significant political debate as Biden nears the end of his presidency.
“Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter,” the president declared in a formal statement.
The clemency order explicitly covers not only the charges he was already facing but also any federal crimes Hunter might have committed between January 1, 2014, and December 1, 2024. This sweeping time frame includes his tenure on the board of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma and other international business dealings, which have long been criticized by Republicans.
Hunter’s legal team acted swiftly after the announcement, notifying judges of the pardon and requesting the dismissal of all charges with prejudice. This effectively halts any further legal proceedings. In an affidavit, Hunter confirmed that he had accepted the clemency. The hearings that had been scheduled for mid-December in his tax and gun cases are now expected to be cancelled.
The pardon represents a reversal of Biden’s earlier promises. Both the president and his press secretary had repeatedly stated before and after his exit from the 2024 presidential race that Hunter would not be granted clemency. Even following Donald Trump’s election victory, Biden publicly insisted that he would allow the justice system to handle the matter independently.
In his statement, however, Biden defended his decision, describing his son as a victim of politically motivated prosecution.
“Hunter was treated differently,” Biden explained, arguing that the charges were brought about by his opponents in Congress as part of an effort to attack him and undermine his presidency.
“I believe in the justice system, 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.
Biden’s words echoed arguments made by Hunter’s attorneys, who have previously claimed that their client was unfairly singled out because of his connection to the president. However, federal judges overseeing the cases dismissed these claims. One Delaware judge called them “nonsensical under the facts here.”
The clemency has already drawn sharp criticism. On social media, former President Trump lambasted the move as “such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!” In a characteristic jab, Trump quipped whether the pardon might also apply to his supporters involved in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riots. He has vowed to pardon them when he returns to office.
