"Hypocrisy", "abuse of justice" Republicans furious after Biden pardon - Democrats also criticize
The pardon is causing anger among Democrats and Trump critics. President Joe Biden has broken a promise and is now facing comparisons with his rival Donald Trump.
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- Before Joe Biden relinquishes his post as US President in January, he pardoned his son Hunter. There were two cases against him.
- This decision earned Biden a lot of criticism. Alongside Donald Trump and other angry Republicans, Democrats also disapproved of Biden's decision.
- Meanwhile, the incumbent president defended his decision and lamented the "unfair" treatment of his son.
The surprising pardon of his son Hunter by outgoing US President Joe Biden has triggered a range of reactions - from cautious understanding to harsh criticism. The Democrat, who had previously emphasized several times that he did not want to take this step, used his presidential power to end the proceedings against his son just a few weeks before the end of his term of office.
Biden's term of office ends on January 20 with the handover of power to President-elect Donald Trump, who already governed the USA from 2017 to 2021.
Trump draws parallels with the storming of the Capitol
Criticism rained down from the Republican ranks in particular. On his Truth Social platform, Trump spoke of an "abuse and failure of justice" and drew parallels with the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021, after which many of his supporters were sentenced to prison. Trump described them as "hostages".
His eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., accused Biden of deliberately carrying out the pardon after the election. Other Republicans also expressed their outrage, including Congressman James Comer, who accused Biden of lying and "corruption".
Tech billionaire Elon Musk, who is to take on an advisory role for Trump's future administration, commented: "Fate loves irony... But it hates hypocrisy."
Biden admonishes "unfair" treatment of his son
In his statement on the pardon, Biden defended his controversial decision by saying that his son had been treated "unfairly" and had been specifically singled out by political opponents in order to harm him. "No reasonable person can come to any other conclusion than that Hunter was singled out simply because he is my son - and that is wrong," explained Biden. He had wrestled with himself for a long time before making the decision.
The accusation of using the judiciary as a political weapon is reminiscent of Trump's argumentation, who repeatedly described the proceedings against himself as "unlawful" and called for an end to the "political instrumentalization" of the judiciary.
Biden faces criticism even from within his own ranks
Reactions within the Democratic Party have been largely muted, with hardly any prominent representatives speaking out so far. One of the few public critics was Democratic MP Greg Stanton. He wrote on X that he respects Biden, but considers the decision to be wrong: "This was not about political persecution. Hunter Biden committed crimes and was convicted by a jury."
Other Democrats defended Biden by pointing to the numerous charges against Trump. Congressman Eric Swalwell, for example, said that those who had defended the Republican despite his charges should stay out of the discussion about Hunter Biden.
"This is a bad precedent that could be abused by future presidents and will unfortunately damage his reputation," wrote the Democratic governor of Colorado, Jared Polis, on the X platform.
Some also showed understanding for Biden's actions, but pointed out the problematic optics. Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, for example, who has since left the party, wrote that the decision may look bad, but most fathers would probably act similarly in such a situation.
Hunter's sister, Ashley Biden, defended her father on Instagram: "Thanks, Dad! What they tried to do to my brother is cruel and politically motivated. Period."
Two cases were brought against Hunter Biden
Hunter Biden himself was grateful. US media quoted him as saying that he wanted to use the second chance in his life to help others. Mistakes that he had admitted "during the darkest days" of his drug addiction had been exploited to "publicly humiliate" him and his family for political reasons.
The 54-year-old son of the president had been involved in two criminal proceedings. In the first case, he was accused of tax offenses, in the second of making false statements when purchasing a weapon - he pleaded guilty in the tax case and was found guilty in the weapons case. In the course of the investigations, many juicy details from Hunter Biden's private life became public.
The sentences for both proceedings were originally due to be announced in December. Although he was theoretically facing long prison sentences, these were considered unlikely due to his lack of previous convictions. Observers such as the prominent US journalist Ezra Klein noted that Biden's decision could also have been influenced by threats from the Trump camp, which had repeatedly and openly announced retaliation against political opponents during the election campaign.
Trump also pardoned family members
Biden's decision is part of a long tradition of pardons by US presidents, in which close confidants or family members have also repeatedly been favored. In 2020, Trump pardoned Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law, who had been convicted of tax evasion and witness tampering. His former campaign manager Paul Manafort and Roger Stone, a long-time confidant, were also pardoned.
Biden's party colleague Bill Clinton also used his presidential power for a relative: in 2001, he granted his half-brother Roger a pardon for a drug offense.
SDA
