The Daily Escape:
Eastham, MA mirror image, October 2024 photo by Bo Ericsson
Why are the media and the GOP so shocked and appalled at Hunter Biden’s pardon? It’s been called “the most consequential since Nixon”. Hunter was set to be sentenced and (probably) jailed this week. The seriousness of his likely sentence was disproportionately severe, largely because he was Joe Biden’s son.
Hunter lied on a form about being on drugs and he paid his taxes late. He entered into a plea deal in which he would admit guilt and get probation, a fair sentence. But the judge and the prosecution blew it up in court. He could have faced years in jail for crimes that someone not named Biden and who hadn’t also committed more serious crimes, would have ever been prosecuted.
On June 6, President Biden announced he would not pardon Hunter or commute any sentence he might receive for his gun-related conviction.
The President’s announcement in June was disappointing. While it was clear that felonies had been committed, the prosecution of Biden seemed motivated by something other than the pursuit of justice. And Hunter Biden was a recovering addict. His crimes, by his own admission, were the byproduct of his drug and alcohol abuse.
Biden has now pardoned Hunter and that was the right thing to do, because they brought the charges against Hunter to break Biden. As Biden said in the pardon statement:
“No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son – and that is wrong. There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution. In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough.”
The media and the GOP have reacted strongly.
On the one hand, people are concerned about a president issuing an unprecedented pardon for his child. But against the orgy of Trump pardons of family, friends, and advisers, Biden’s pardon of his son on minor charges pursued for political purposes seems like small potatoes to Wrongo. Biden’s reasons for pardoning his son are understandable. But Biden’s decision could be a precedent for future pardons—by presidents with flimsy or corrupt reasons for pardoning family members.
On the other hand, people have expressed the belief the Joe Biden did the right thing. Wrongo comes down closer to that side of that equation. The pardon process is supposed to be used to do justice. And this is justice. Hunter Biden would likely not have been charged on the facts if he was anyone else.
Biden exercised the pardon power; he hasn’t tried to pardon himself. He issued a pardon he was entitled to give. But it is a departure since he’s been so careful to avoid even the appearance of impropriety and said he would not pardon his son, to reverse course. That is reason to pause and reflect on this pardon.
Bill Clinton pardoned his brother, Roger, after he completed a sentence for trafficking cocaine.
Will pardoning Hunter “embolden” Trump to break more norms? No, he will break them anyway. Trump didn’t need any excuse to pardon his henchmen. He’s already pardoned Steve Bannon, Paul Manafort, Michael Flynn, Roger Stone and Jared Kushner’s father whom he just named to be the Ambassador to France! He’s pardoned Dinesh D’Souza and Joe Arpaio! A list of friends, allies and family.
It’s nonsense to think that pardoning Hunter changes anything when it comes to Trump.
Until the media uses the same yardstick to measure the actions by Biden against the actions by Trump, Wrongo is cheering for Joe. Trump’s actions are treated as somehow acceptable while incumbent GOP-ers clutch their pearls, or taking umbrage, at Biden. Democrats are being held to a totally different standard. It’s journalistic hypocrisy at its finest. And it does not serve democracy or America.
This ISN’T a two wrongs make a right situation. That Hunter Biden is not an admirable person in general has exactly nothing to do with any of this.
Let’s compare and contrast:
- Hunter Biden was prosecuted mostly because his father is POTUS, and for actions that nobody else is ever been criminally prosecuted for. His plea bargain was rejected only because his father is POTUS. That is the very definition of political persecution.
- OTOH, Trump was charged with extremely serious crimes: theft of secret documents and a failed coup d’etat are the most serious crimes anybody can commit against the body politic. And he is the only person to have been so charged, because no one else has ever committed such crimes.
- Charging him wasn’t political persecution, despite Trump’s moaning that it was. While the Republicans spent the last six years trying to make Hunter a political albatross for Biden.
While Trump “whataboutism” is an exhausting game, the hypocrisy of the Republicans and the double standard of the media is galling. Those who supported Trump’s pardons of his political cronies for crimes that involved his own campaign, should have no critique of Biden’s pardon.
The Dems have to stop being the pearl clutching Party. Most voters do not care about Hunter Biden. We should remain on the high moral ground, and firmly assert and argue that the Biden pardon of his son was the moral thing to do despite the hand wringing from the press and others.
It’s amazing how the media is so focused on Joe Biden’s “lie” regarding this pardon without any contrast to Trumps lies, the most egregious of which (the 2020 election was stolen) has caused so much damage to our country
To the extent that Biden said he was not going to pardon his son.. well this was in a sense a gambit to persuade voters to vote for a Democrat. But the Dems lost. So if a quid pro quo… well the other party did not perform his part. So it is that the promise could be withdrawn.
And then we have the changed circumstances – it is clear that the Trump regime will be a partisan whorehouse. So no need to sacrifice Hunter Biden.
To those clutching their pearls and saying that this ruins Biden’s legacy. Well if Biden’s lifetime of service is not enough. And remember he could have pushed for more hearings on Clarence Thomas but did not. He also could have fired that sniveling shit who heads the post office -but did not. So if Biden’s honoring of the spirit of the law has not been enough and one decision breaks all of that, then all perspective has been lost.
To the extent that Biden said he was not going to pardon his son.. well this was in a sense a gambit to persuade voters to vote for a Democrat. But the Dems lost. So if a quid pro quo… well the other party did not perform his part. So it is that the promise could be withdrawn.
And then we have the changed circumstances – it is clear that the Trump regime will be a partisan whorehouse. So no need to sacrifice Hunter Biden.
To those clutching their pearls and saying that this ruins Biden’s legacy. Well if Biden’s lifetime of service is not enough. And remember he could have pushed for more hearings on Clarence Thomas but did not. He also could have fired that sniveling shit who heads the post office -but did not. So if Biden’s honoring of the spirit of the law has not been enough and one decision breaks all of that, then all perspective has been lost.
Why criticize Presidentels for granting pardons, given that they have that unqualified power? Let critics instead criticize the US Constitution. (But that of course is like criticizing God.)
Right on, Wrongo!