Biden Pardons Family in Middle of Trump’s Inauguration, Citing ‘Attacks and Threats’
AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File
President Joe Biden announced his decision to preemptively pardon his siblings and their spouses just minutes before ceding the Oval Office to Donald Trump on Monday.
“My family has been subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me—the worst kind of partisan politics. Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,” wrote Biden in a statement. “I believe in the rule of law, and I am optimistic that the strength of our legal institutions will ultimately prevail over politics. But baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families. Even when individuals have done nothing wrong and will ultimately be exonerated, the mere fact of being investigated or prosecuted can irreparably damage their reputations and finances.”
“That is why I am exercising my power under the Constitution to pardon James B. Biden, Sara Jones Biden, Valerie Biden Owens, John T. Owens, and Francis W. Biden,” he concluded. “The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that they engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense.”
The slew of pardons followed the now former president’s decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden — who, unlike the other Bidens to receive pardons — had been convicted of crimes.
Some observers, including House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY), had predicted that Biden would pardon his “other family members.”
“Jim Biden, the president’s brother, we brought him in for a transcribed interview and he lied, just like Hunter Biden lied in his deposition, and it’s a felony to lie to Congress,” observed Comer during an appearance on Newsmax. “We have criminal referrals on Jim Biden, as well as Hunter Biden, so I fully expect Joe Biden to pardon Jim Biden and maybe others.”
