President Biden pardons his son Hunter Biden despite pledges not to

WASHINGTON – In a stunning reversal, President Joe Biden announced Sunday that he pardoned his son Hunter Biden who was convicted of three federal gun felonies and federal tax charges earlier this year.

"Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter," the president said in a statement. "From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted."

Joe Biden said he believes in the justice system but believes "raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice – and once I made this decision this weekend, there was no sense in delaying it further."

"I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision," Biden said.

Joe Biden previously said he would not pardon his son, who was the first child of a sitting president to be convicted of a crime.

NBC News first reported news of the pardon.

The president on Monday morning did not respond to shouted questions from reporters about the pardon as he boarded Air Force One in Sal, Cabo Verde, where he stopped en route to Angola where he is set to make his first trip to the continent of Africa.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden notified staff about his decision to pardon his son over the weekend as he celebrated he Thanksgiving holiday in Nantucket, Massachusetts, with his family, including Hunter Biden.

“One of the things that the president always believes is to be truthful to the American people,” Jean-Pierre told reporters during a gaggle on Air Force One when pressed about Joe Biden previously saying he would not pardon his son.

"Two things can be true," Jean-Pierre said. "The President does believe in the justice system and the Department of Justice. And he also believes that his son was singled out politically."

What charges was Hunter Biden found guilty of?

In June, Hunter Biden was found guilty of falsely filling out a federal form denying he was addicted to narcotics when he purchased a firearm, lying to a gun dealer, and knowingly possessing the revolver despite restrictions against people addicted to drugs owning firearms. He was also found guilty of nine charges, including failing to pay his taxes from 2016 through 2019.

Hunter Biden was expected to be sentenced for both convictions in the coming weeks.

In a statement issued after his pardon, Hunter Biden said he has "admitted and taken responsibility for my mistakes during the darkest days of my addiction – mistakes that have been exploited to publicly humiliate and shame me and my family for political sport."

"In recovery, we can be given the opportunity to make amends where possible and rebuild our lives if we never take for granted the mercy that we have been afforded," he said. "I will never take the clemency I have been given today for granted and will devote the life I have rebuilt to helping those who are still sick and suffering.”

Days after his son was found guilty over the summer, President Joe Biden said he "would abide by the jury’s decision" and "will not pardon him."

But in his statement on the pardon, Joe Biden said he believes Hunter Biden was unfairly targeted for being his son.

The president pointed to a plea deal that fell apart in July 2023 that could have resolved Hunter Biden's gun and tax charges without prison time. The president said Sunday that the plea deal "would have been a fair, reasonable resolution of Hunter’s cases."

"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," Joe Biden said in his statement Sunday. "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," Joe Biden said. "Enough is enough."

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Donald Trump criticizes Hunter Biden pardon

The pardon was met with backlash by several Republican lawmakers, including President-elect Donald Trump, as well as by some members of Joe Biden's party.

Trump criticized the pardon, asking whether those prosecuted for the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection were included. Trump has previously said he would pardon those who were convicted for the attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“Does the Pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years? Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Meanwhile, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability who led investigations into the Biden family’s business dealings, claimed Hunter Biden’s charges "were just the tip of the iceberg in the blatant corruption that President Biden and the Biden Crime Family have lied about to the American people."

"It’s unfortunate that rather than come clean about their decades of wrongdoing, President Biden and his family continue to do everything they can to avoid accountability," Comer said in a statement issued Sunday.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said he was disappointed with the president’s decision, adding that it creates a precedent for future presidents.

“When you become President, your role is Pater familias of the nation,” the Democratic governor wrote in a post on X. "Hunter brought the legal trouble he faced on himself, and one can sympathize with his struggles while also acknowledging that no one is above the law, not a President and not a President’s son."

(This story was updated to add new information.)

Contributing: Bart Jansen, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: President Biden pardons his son Hunter Biden despite pledges not to