Article II, Section 2 of the US Constitution says "The President...shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in case of Impeachment." So. impeachments are excluded, but so are offenses under state law, as the power applies to pardons for offences against the United States, which would be federal law.
I don't know about you, but I was not surprised by Biden's pardon of his son Hunter. Yes, it seemed as if Biden promised dozens of times that he would not pardon Hunter. Yes, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre seemed to say dozens of times that Biden would not pardon Hunter. But absent a conviction for murder, rape or other violent offense, did anyone really think Biden would not pardon his son?
Biden justified the pardon factually by saying that the filling out of a gun form (lying actually) almost never results in a felony charge. That may be true. Then he said his son was late in paying his taxes because of his serious addiction; and he eventually paid the taxes with interest and penalties. Well, his serious addiction did not prevent Hunter from splurging on various things, rather than using that money to pay his taxes...but that's another topic.
Let's talk about Biden's legal justifications for the pardon. "No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter's case can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son. And that is wrong." Yes, well, Hunter was definitely singled out. First, the special counsel let many of the possible charges lapse due to the running of the statute of limitations. Who else would get such slow walking of a prosecution? Who else would get such a favorable plea deal? But the Judge saw it differently, and refused to accept the special treatment given to Hunter. So, yes, he was singled out - favorably.
Biden: "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..." There's the rub. So, President Biden, exactly when was it that "raw politics" infected your son's prosecution? Clearly not when you said so many times that you would not pardon Hunter. Or, were you lying all those times to the American people? And you let your press secretary lie also?
Karine Jean-Pierre, after also telling us many times that Biden would not pardon Hunter, said "how politically infected these cases are." Once again, just when did she and the president become aware that the cases against Hunter might be politically infected? Which, of course, brings me to my next question: Are you freaking kidding me? Let's talk about politically infected cases.
President Biden, here is what you said about your hand-picked Attorney General, Merrick Garland, when speaking with your "inner circle." As reported by the New York Times in 2022: "As recently as late last year, Mr. Biden confided to his inner circle that he believed former President Donald J. Trump was a threat to democracy and should be prosecuted, according to two people familiar with his comments. And while the president has never communicated his frustrations directly to Mr. Garland, he has said privately that he wanted Mr. Garland to act less like a ponderous judge and more like a prosecutor who is willing to take decisive action over the events of Jan. 6."
The President never said anything to Mr. Garland directly? He sure as hell did, because unless you believe in everything being a coincidence, that conversation was leaked, and Mr. Garland got the message loud and clear. The next thing you know, we had Jack Smith appointed as special counsel, bringing charges against President Trump. What about the unspoken rule that says presidents should not be involved in deciding who gets prosecuted? Clearly, Biden did not care about that. (Well, he did not care about lying numerous times either, so no surprise I guess.)
Every case brought against President Trump has been, allow me to say, "infected"...by "raw politics." But it's worse. Not only did Biden place his hand on the scales of justice, he did so against the likely (and eventual) Republican nominee for president. In other words, Biden wanted political prosecutions to defeat his political opponent. Biden acted like a third world dictator. Many of Trump's associates who faced prosecution, did so because they had been affiliated with Trump.
I think we can all agree (or should agree) that Biden just opened the door for Trump to pardon, or commute the sentences of, the January 6 defendants (and others). Obviously, it should be on a case by case basis. Anyone who committed violence, especially against a police officer, should not necessarily get a pardon. But if the sentencing was disproportionately long compared to others, that would warrant a commutation. And, if Biden means what he said about politics infecting prosecutions, he should immediately pardon President Trump. I won't hold my breath,
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