President Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter Sunday night after promising he wouldn’t use his executive authority to pardon or commute his son’s conviction on federal gun charges.
In a statement accompanying the pardon, Biden blamed Hunter’s conviction on his political enemies. “Hunter was singled out only because he was my son—and that is wrong,” Biden said.
Both David Weiss, the special counsel prosecuting the case, and Hunter Biden’s lawyer Abbe Lowell declined to comment. The White House said as recently as last Monday that the president wouldn’t pardon his son.
Biden said he believed in the justice system but that his son’s conviction was “infected” by “raw politics,” adding “I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision.”