Liberal media commentators largely defended President Biden for issuing a sweeping pardon for his son Hunter on Sunday after he had repeatedly said he would not do so.
The first son was convicted in two separate federal cases earlier this year. He pled guilty to federal tax charges in September, and was convicted of three felony gun charges in June after lying on a mandatory gun purchase form by saying he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said as recently as November that the president would not pardon his son. That changed Sunday night, after the White House announced Biden had pardoned Hunter for offenses against the U.S. that he "has committed or may have committed" from Jan. 1, 2014 to Dec. 1, 2024.
Following the announcement, several liberal media figures took to social media to justify Biden going back on his pledge to not use the presidential office to benefit his own family.
"Please spare me all hypocritical outrage over Hunter Biden's pardon," liberal columnist Wajahat Ali wrote on Bluesky. "The same movement that supports and celebrates a criminal vulgarian insurrection who pardons his criminal friends now feigns outrage. Here's me playing the world's smallest violin."
"We’re not accepting complaints about the Hunter Biden pardon unless you also complained about the Steve Bannon, Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, and Paul Manafort pardons," Mother Jones journalist and MSNBC analyst David Corn wrote on Bluesky.
"When addressing MAGA Republican concerns about the Hunter Biden pardon, the correct answer is 'because f--- you, that's why,'" former Obama administration official and MSNBC columnist Brandon Friedman wrote. "Stop waffling and apologizing in front of bad-faith trolls, fascists and norms police," he added.
"New Rule: You shall not complain about Hunter Biden's pardon on my feed unless you also admit the Supreme Court pardoned Trump for a coup," popular left-wing account Mueller, She Wrote posted to Bluesky.
LAWMAKERS HARSHLY CRITICIZE BIDEN'S DECISION TO PARDON HUNTER: ‘LIAR’
"Hunter Biden’s TWO criminal cases were political prosecutions in order to attack President Joe Biden. The DOJ pursued unprecedented charges after a high-pressure campaign by Trump and his surrogates," MSNBC host Katie Phang also wrote on Bluesky,
MSNBC legal analyst Joyce Vance also appeared on the liberal network on Sunday to defend Biden.
"This is President Biden exercising a power that he unquestionably has the ability to exercise. Many presidents at the end of their term use the pardon power in ways that not everyone agrees with. I think this use of it, some people will agree, others will find objectionable given his prior statement that he wouldn't use it in this way, but it’s not an abuse of power. This isn't someone trying to interfere, for instance, with the smooth transfer of power," Vance said.
Former CNN host Don Lemon also hit back at those criticizing Biden.
"Don't be so holier than thou. This is not really about politics. This is about being a parent," he said in a video. "Of course he's going to pardon his kid."
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Some liberals reluctantly criticized the president's decision, however.
"The pardon is understandable—but nonetheless objectionable," anti-Trump attorney George Conway wrote on Bluesky.
"IMO [in my opinion], if Joe Biden was planning to pardon Hunter, he shouldn’t have said that he would not pardon Hunter," progressive journalist Judd Legum wrote.
"All of these things can be true: Hunter Biden broke the law. Hunter Biden traded on his last name to make money. Hunter Biden’s actions were exploited and wildly exaggerated by unscrupulous Republicans in an effort to damage his father," The Washington Post columnist Philip Bump also wrote.
"'Trump is worse' is never a good argument to justify bad behavior," The Bulwark publisher Sarah Longwell wrote on X.
"Yes, Trump’s horrible, that’s why we oppose him. In fact, the worse Trump is, the more important it is to #resist doing anything that resembles Trump’s conduct. Biden knows it’s wrong. That’s why he committed over and over to not doing it. It doesn’t make him the same as Trump. It doesn’t erase how singularly corrupt Trump’s current appointments are. It’s simply wrong and we should say so, lest we forget that right and wrong still exist and awareness of it matters in our President," she added.
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Over the summer, Biden ruled out a pardon for Hunter before and after he was found guilty in the gun case.
"I am not going to do anything," Biden said after Hunter was convicted. "I will abide by the jury’s decision."
Fox News' Greg Wehner and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this article.
