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House Democrat: Biden 'Got This One Wrong'

Madeline Leesman
Madeline Leesman  |  December 03, 2024 11:00 AM

Arizona Democrat Rep. Greg Stanton said this week that President Joe Biden “got this one wrong” when it comes to pardoning his son, Hunter Biden, on federal charges.

Stanton made the remarks on X. 

“I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong,” Stanton wrote in response to a headline from the Associated Press about the president pardoning his son.

“This wasn’t a politically-motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies, and was convicted by a jury of his peers,” Stanton added.

Previously, Stanton was one of the Democrats who called on President Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. 

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“For the sake of American democracy and to continue to make progress on our priorities, I believe it is time for the President to step aside as our nominee,” Stanton wrote on X in July.

As Townhall covered, with just weeks left in office, Joe Biden pardoned Hunter Biden, though he initially promised he would not do so. 

“Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter," Biden wrote 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.” 

“Without aggravating factors like use in a crime, multiple purchases, or buying a weapon as a straw purchaser, people are almost never brought to trial on felony charges solely for how they filled out a gun form. Those who were late paying their taxes because of serious addictions, but paid them back subsequently with interest and penalties, are typically given non-criminal resolutions. It is clear that Hunter was treated differently,” his statement continued. 

“I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe 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,” he concluded.

This past summer, Biden told the press that he would not pardon his son, claiming he would “abide by the jury’s decision.” 

“Will you accept the jury’s outcome, their verdict, no matter what it is?” Joe Biden was asked in an interview. 

“Yes,” he said. 

“And, have you ruled out a pardon?”

“Yes,” he answered.