President Joe Biden was under "pressure" from "inside the family," specifically from first lady Jill Biden, to pardon son Hunter Biden, according to CNN reporter Jeff Zeleny.
"We were told that this sort of came to a head this weekend, and this is why President Biden decided now to do this," Zeleny said on-air Sunday. "I'm told this has been very much a family discussion and something that has not been widely shared or discussed as a policy matter inside the West Wing. But there was a worry of future prosecutions or future potential of what the incoming Trump Justice Department could do."
"Clearly, there was pressure inside the family," he said. "We were told, really in recent weeks, that Dr. Jill Biden, first lady Jill Biden, was really supportive of the president doing something like this. The president was not sure."
Hunter Biden was convicted on federal gun charges in June and pleaded guilty to tax charges in September to avoid a trial. He was set to be sentenced in both cases in the coming weeks and was facing years in prison.
The pardon Biden issued extends far beyond the two recent convictions, however, and is a sweeping pardon that covers any other "offenses against the United States which he has committed or may have committed or taken part in" from Jan. 1, 2014, through Dec. 1, 2024.
In 2014, Hunter Biden reportedly earned $80,000 a month for sitting on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma, despite his lack of knowledge about the energy industry.
He has been accused of influence peddling and selling access to his father, as well as failing to register as a foreign agent, by congressional Republicans, who launched several investigations into the first son's overseas activities during his father's time in office.
Both Biden and the White House repeatedly said that the president would not pardon his son, prior to his reversal on Sunday.
Asked about Hunter's pardon at a White House Christmas party, Jill Biden said she backed Biden's decision.
"Of course I support the pardon of my son," the first lady said in video shared online by The Post Millennial.
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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