CNN anchor Casey Hunt said Monday that Democrats are reluctant to criticize President Donald Trump after former President Joe Biden pre-emptively granted pardons to several family members on his final day in office. He said he thinks it will become more difficult.
In one of his last steps as president, Biden granted preemptive pardons to brothers Frank and James, James' wife Sarah Biden, and sister Valerie Owens and her husband John Owens. . In CNN's coverage of President Trump's inauguration, Hunt said Democrats were upset by Biden's pardons for his family, which Trump expected after pardoning his son Hunter in December. He noted that he already believes his ability to attack the amnesty for the Jan. 6 rioters has weakened. (Related: Joe Biden's brother changed story about dealings with China after lawmakers showed receipts, sources say)
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“The politics here are so bad, and I heard from a number of sources today, that the Democratic Party has been blunt about President Donald Trump's preemptive pardons for his family that were revealed at the last minute. “I'm surprised, stunned, shocked,” said Hunt. “He's about to be sworn into office and Joe Biden will lose his pardon power.” “Many of my sources say Hunter Biden's pardon makes it easier for Donald Trump to pardon the entire January 6th mob and use that pardon power in ways that could hurt him. It already felt like there was less political pain.”
“Doing this with your own family at this 11th hour is clearly, at least in the minds of the Democrats I'm talking to, criticizing Donald Trump for using his pardon power for Joe Biden's actions. “It's going to make it even more difficult for me to walk out the door,” she continued.
President Trump promised to pardon the Jan. 6 protesters during the 2024 presidential campaign, saying at a CNN town hall in May 2023 that he would do so “very early” in his second administration. He said he would pardon “the majority” of them. CNN presidential historian Tim Naftali said shortly after the former president pardoned Hunter that the move “justifies” President Trump's planned amnesty grants to protesters.
Biden's pardons for Hunter and five other family members all date back to 2014.
In a statement announcing the pardon, the former president claimed the family had been victims of “the worst kind of partisan politics.” He also granted preemptive pardons in the final hours of his term to former White House health adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, and members of the Jan. He claimed that he was not worthy of being a target.
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