{"id":2376023,"date":"2024-12-04T09:43:59","date_gmt":"2024-12-04T14:43:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/will-joe-biden-pardon-donald-trump-before-leaving-office\/"},"modified":"2024-12-04T09:45:03","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T14:45:03","slug":"will-joe-biden-pardon-donald-trump-before-leaving-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/will-joe-biden-pardon-donald-trump-before-leaving-office\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Joe Biden pardon Donald Trump before leaving office?"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwill-joe-biden-pardon-donald-trump-before-leaving-office%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2376023&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>On \u2062December 1, 2024, President joe Biden issued a \u200dsweeping pardon for his son, Hunter Biden, following his convictions\u200d in two\u200d federal felony cases related to firearms and tax\u200d offenses. This controversial decision has led to important backlash from both sides\u2063 of the political aisle, \u2064with Democrats claiming it undermines public trust and Republicans denouncing it as evidence of a two-tiered justice system. \u200bbiden\u200c framed the pardon as a response to what\u2062 he described as\u200d politically motivated prosecutions.<\/p>\n<p>The pardon has sparked speculation about whether Biden might consider extending similar clemency to\u200b former President Donald Trump, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/jd-vance-argues-us-presidents-need-immunity-to-do-their-job-washington-examiner-4\/\" title=\"JD Vance contends that US presidents require immunity to effectively perform their duties, according to the Washington Examiner\">faces multiple \u2062legal challenges<\/a>, including charges related to election interference. \u200bSome lawmakers have suggested that pardoning Trump \u2063could serve as\u200c a\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">reconciliatory \u200dgesture\u2064 amid escalating political tensions<\/a>. Though,\u2063 many Democratic senators \u2062expressed strong opposition\u200d to the\u200b idea, underscoring the political risks\u200d and potential backlash from their constituents.<\/p>\n<p>Biden&#8217;s justification for pardoning Hunter\u2063 echoed Trump&#8217;s long-standing claims\u2063 of being a victim of unjust legal actions, highlighting \u200bthe\u2063 complicated interplay between personal and political interests in these high-profile \u2063cases. The situation is reminiscent \u200cof historical precedents,such as \u2064Gerald ford&#8217;s pardon of Richard Nixon,which initiated debates about political accountability and justice. As discussions continue, many observers are contemplating the broader implications of these \u2064pardons on the political landscape \u200din America.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Will Biden pardon Trump? Hunter clemency gift opens door for once-unthinkable move<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1902498\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Joe Biden<\/a>&lsquo;s controversial blanket pardon for his son <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/hunter-biden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Hunter Biden<\/a> has given credence to the notion, however far-fetched it may sound, that he should also extend one to President-elect <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Amid the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3247631\/democrats-rebuke-biden-pardon-hunter-improper-use-power\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"fallout from irritated Democrats\">fallout from irritated Democrats<\/a> who accuse the president of an &ldquo;improper use of power,&rdquo; some make the case that Biden pardoning Trump could even the scales and extend an olive branch to the incoming administration.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The slate should be wiped clean. I think it&rsquo;s by far the most balanced way to do it,&rdquo; retiring Sen.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-manchin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Joe Manchin<\/a>&nbsp;(I-WV), who caucuses with Democrats, told the&nbsp;<em>Washington Examiner.<\/em>&nbsp;&ldquo;Here in Congress, with the senators and congresspeople, it would balance things out and calm things down.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3222408\/joe-biden-lame-duck-session-trump-proof-legacy\/\"><strong>BIDEN TO USE LAME-DUCK SESSION TO &lsquo;TRUMP-PROOF&rsquo; LEGACY<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) made the case that Trump, like Hunter Biden, has faced a &ldquo;weaponized&rdquo; legal process in the case of falsifying business records for a hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Those cases were clearly weaponized against them for political gain. That&rsquo;s undeniable,&rdquo; he told <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2024\/12\/02\/democrats-hunter-biden-pardon-reaction-00192247\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Politico\">Politico<\/a><\/em>. &ldquo;That was always inappropriate in my opinion. And a pardon in both are appropriate. And, for me, that collectively has damaged America&rsquo;s trust in these institutions.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Hunter Biden was criminally convicted in two federal felony cases and was awaiting sentencing this month.<\/p>\n<p>In June, a jury in Delaware convicted Biden of three counts related to lying about drug use on a form when purchasing a handgun and carried a sentence of up to 25 years in prison. In a separate case in September, Biden <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/sco-weiss\/pr\/robert-hunter-biden-convicted-three-felony-tax-offenses-and-six-misdemeanor-tax-offenses\" title=\"pleaded guilty\">pleaded guilty<\/a> to nine charges related to failing to pay income taxes on millions of dollars worth of income, which carried a sentence of up to 17 years in prison.<\/p>\n<p>But Biden<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3246641\/joe-biden-pardons-son-hunter-of-all-criminal-charges\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> issued a sweeping pardon<\/a> on Sunday of his son&rsquo;s convictions, in a reversal of his past comments claiming he would not intervene. The pardon covers the past decade going back to the beginning of 2014 for any crime Hunter Biden &ldquo;has committed or may have committed.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The blowback on Biden was immediate and bipartisan. Democrats bemoaned Biden&rsquo;s actions as a &ldquo;setback&rdquo; that would &ldquo;erode&rdquo; Americans&rsquo; trust while Republicans claimed it as another instance of a two-tiered justice system.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;As a father, I get it. But as someone who wants people to believe in public service again, it&rsquo;s a setback,&rdquo; said Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">As a father, I get it. But as someone who wants people to believe in public service again, it&rsquo;s a setback. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/JeiwVRFrSV\">https:\/\/t.co\/JeiwVRFrSV<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Congressman Greg Landsman (@RepGregLandsman) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RepGregLandsman\/status\/1863591569363804388?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 2, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The prospects of Biden pardoning Trump may seem outlandish, given the Democrat&rsquo;s longtime warning to voters that the Republican poses a &ldquo;threat to democracy.&rdquo; Such a move would fully undermine Biden&rsquo;s rhetoric and elicit fury from fellow Democrats extending beyond their displeasure for pardoning Hunter. <\/p>\n<p>In three additional criminal cases beyond the falsified documents for the hush-money payment, Trump was charged for mishandling classified documents after leaving office, and separate state and federal charges for trying to overturn the 2020 election.<\/p>\n<p>Several Democratic lawmakers had little appetite to entertain the notion of a pardon or flatly rejected it. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a terrible idea,&rdquo; Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) said, declining to elaborate.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t even considered it,&rdquo; said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT). <\/p>\n<p>Similarly, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said he would not &ldquo;speculate about any other pardon.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3226193\/which-biden-executive-orders-first-to-go-trump\/\"><strong>HERE&rsquo;S WHICH BIDEN EXECUTIVE ORDERS WILL BE THE FIRST TO GO UNDER TRUMP<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), expected to be the next chair of Senate Democrats&rsquo; campaign arm for the 2026 elections, declined to stake out a position and said the decision was entirely left to Biden. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It would send a message that there&rsquo;s been a trend towards political prosecutions,&rdquo; Gillibrand told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s certainly something he can consider, but it&rsquo;s entirely his decision.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Proponents of a pardon for Trump say it could ease some of the political tensions Biden is facing.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think Biden and his party would probably benefit more from it than they would lose,&rdquo; said Jon Schaff, a professor of political science at Northern State University in South Dakota.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It would be seen as a move of comity, of healing,&rdquo; Schaff added. &ldquo;There is a relatively broad consensus that our politics have been embittered and our politics lacks in any kind of magnanimity. And this would be the magnanimous move by Biden.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Biden justified his flip-flop on pardoning Hunter by arguing his son was singled out by the Justice Department for political reasons and the victim of selective prosecution. &ldquo;Enough is enough,&rdquo; the president said in his Sunday statement that railed against &ldquo;raw politics&rdquo; infecting the justice system.<\/p>\n<p>The tone was Trump-esque as the former president has insisted his charges were only because his political enemies want to destroy him. If Biden is serious about ending another &ldquo;miscarriage of justice,&rdquo; Trump&rsquo;s argument has long been he&rsquo;s the ultimate victim of unfounded prosecutions.<\/p>\n<p>Some draw similarities to the situation Biden finds himself to that of former President Gerald Ford pardoning Richard Nixon in the wake of the Watergate scandal. &ldquo;My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over,&rdquo; Ford would quip after taking an oath administered by Chief Justice Warren Burger.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/pardon\/clemency-statistics#Joseph%20R.%20Biden\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">recent statistics<\/a> from the Office of the Pardon Attorney, Biden has received at least 11,863 requests for clemency and pardons. Of those requests, 25 pardons and 132 commutations have been granted. <\/p>\n<p>Yet a blanket pardon for Trump would come with its own set of issues. <\/p>\n<p>Cayce Myers, a professor at Virginia Tech&rsquo;s School of Communication, pushed back against a Biden pardon of Trump as removing a personal issue from the political arena.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It seriously calls into question the presidential pardon power and it calls into question, is it abused, and is it legitimate? And is it something that needs to be revisited?&rdquo; Myers said. &ldquo;From a perspective of Biden &hellip; I think it would be criticized heavily by Democrats. I think any Republican that&rsquo;s calling for Biden to do that knows that he&rsquo;s not. It&rsquo;s just sort of a political talking point to underscore the bias in his own pardon of his son.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Michigan State University law professor&nbsp;Brian Kalt foreshadowed &ldquo;outrage&rdquo; from Democrats and a failed attempt at unity. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Republicans would like it, but it&rsquo;s not like they would change their minds about Biden overall,&rdquo; Kalt said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see the payoff for him, and I don&rsquo;t think it would bring any sort of unity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s too late. If he pardons Trump it&rsquo;s going to be seen as nothing other than an attempt to reduce the backlash,&rdquo; added Paul Larkin, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bidens-mass-pardon-for-marijuana-possession-likely-benefitting-offenders-guilty-of-worse-crimes-expert-says\/\" title=\"Biden\u2019s Mass Pardon For Marijuana Possession Likely Benefitting Offenders Guilty Of Worse Crimes, Expert Says\">senior legal research fellow<\/a> in the Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Heritage Foundation.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If he wanted to do this, he should have had a large number of pardon warrants that he was going to sign, that he signed for all sorts of people, including Donald Trump and his son,&rdquo; he added. <\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3106551\/biden-administration-rulemaking-blitzes-aim-trump-proof-federal-government\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">BIDEN ADMINISTRATION RULEMAKING BLITZES AIM TO TRUMP-PROOF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Notably, presidential pardons only extend to federal crimes and would not benefit Trump&rsquo;s felony conviction in New York in his hush money case or the charges against him in the Georgia election subversion case for efforts to overturn the state&rsquo;s results. Only governors possess the power to fully cleanse Trump of his legal troubles at the state level.<\/p>\n<p>Special counsel Jack Smith has moved to drop the two federal cases he was prosecuting against Trump, which are for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-launches-2024-presidential-bid\/\" title=\"Trump Launches 2024 Presidential Bid\">allegedly mishandling classified documents<\/a> and efforts at the federal level to overturn the 2020 election. <\/p>\n<p>It remains unclear whether the Georgia case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will have to wait until 2029 when Trump is out of office. Kalt doubted legal cases would continue to plague Trump after a second term.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is unlikely that Trump would face prosecution after leaving office anyway, at this point,&rdquo; said Kalt, the law professor. &ldquo;But if he did, and if a pardon was appropriate, it would be for the new president at that time to issue a pardon.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>The <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> reached out to the White House for comment. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1902498\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1902498\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Will Biden pardon Trump? Hunter&#8217;s pardon raises questions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3565,"featured_media":2376024,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/trump-resistance-sluggish.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[3620,12737,3634],"class_list":["post-2376023","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-biden","tag-pardon","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/trump-resistance-sluggish.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2376023","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3565"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2376023"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2376023\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2376027,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2376023\/revisions\/2376027"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2376024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2376023"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2376023"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2376023"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}