Speculation is growing that President Biden may pardon his son, Hunter Biden, who was recently convicted in a federal firearms trial, although the president and his staff have said he has no plans to pardon his eldest son, who has legal troubles.
“I’ve been very clear: The president has no intention of pardoning his son,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said in December. Biden himself addressed the issue last month, telling ABC News he would not pardon his son and affirmatively accepting the jury’s verdict in the case.
The administration clarified to Fox News Digital on Tuesday that the president’s statements about pardoning Hunter Biden stood, but the credibility of those reports has been called into question after Biden denied for weeks that he was considering dropping out of the 2024 race. Biden ultimately withdrew from the race in a social media post on Sunday afternoon.
Asked Tuesday whether there were plans to pardon Hunter Biden, White House spokesman Andrew Bates told Fox Digital, “The president spoke about this in his interview with ABC. His statement remains unchanged.”
Hunter Biden found guilty on all charges in gun trial
Joe Biden and his son Hunter (AP Photo/Andrew Harnick)
Republicans have speculated that the president may pardon his son, with Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas saying there is a 100% chance that Biden will pardon Hunter.
“There is a 100% chance that Joe Biden will pardon Hunter Biden. Hunter Biden will be pardoned as a result of this decision,” Cruz said Monday on his podcast, “The Ted Cruz Verdict,” referring to Biden’s decision this week to drop out of the presidential race.
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“It will happen after Election Day. It won’t happen before Election Day. But he will stay. And I believe it’s 100% certain that after Election Day, Joe Biden will pardon Hunter,” he added.
Hunter Biden was convicted by a federal jury on June 11 of lying about his drug use when purchasing a firearm in 2018. He was convicted on three counts of making a false statement when purchasing a firearm, making a false statement regarding information required to be kept by federally licensed firearms dealers, and possessing a firearm by a person who is unlawfully using or intoxicated by a controlled substance.
Hunter Biden: Guilty In that case.
Hunter Biden was convicted of all charges by a Delaware jury. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum/File)
Prosecutors sought to prove that Hunter Biden lied in October 2018 on a federal firearms form, known as ATF Form 4473, by checking the “no” box when asked if he was an illegal drug user or addicted to a controlled substance.
Hunter Biden has a long history of substance abuse, which was highlighted in his 2021 memoir, “Beautiful Things.” The book was cited repeatedly by both the prosecution and Biden’s defense team during the nearly seven-day trial. The memoir takes readers through the ups and downs of Biden’s crack cocaine addiction and his attempts at sobriety.
During the trial, Hunter Biden’s lawyers did not deny his eldest son’s long history of drug abuse, instead arguing that Biden did not consider himself a drug addict the day he bought the Cobra Colt 38.
Biden will address the nation from the Oval Office about his decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race.
Hunter Biden has not yet been sentenced in the case.
President Biden announced his withdrawal from the presidential election in a letter to X on Sunday afternoon. For weeks, the White House and his campaign had denied that Biden was withdrawing from the election, insisting that he was running to win a rematch against former President Trump.
Biden was self-isolating in Delaware after being diagnosed with COVID-19 when he announced he would not run for a second term. He returned to Washington, D.C., on Tuesday after testing negative for the virus.
Following Hunter Biden’s withdrawal from the race, there was also speculation on social media that Biden was likely to pardon Hunter Biden.
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The gun trial is the first Hunter Biden has faced this year. He is scheduled to go on trial in California in September on nine federal tax charges. The case was brought by special counsel David Weiss, who also oversaw the gun trial.
