Out Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado (D) reacted with dismay Sunday night after President Biden granted his son Hunter a pardon.
Polis called the move “bad precedent.”
Related:
“While as a father I certainly understand President @JoeBiden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country,” Polis posted to X not long after the White House issued the announcement.
Insights for the LGBTQ+ community
Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more.
Joe Biden granted the pardon after Hunter Biden was convicted in two separate federal cases earlier this year. The pardon applies to offenses that Hunter Biden “has committed or may have committed” from January 1, 2014 to December 1, 2024.
“Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter,” Biden wrote in a statement issued from the White House. “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.”
“It is clear that Hunter was treated differently,” President Biden added.
Polis wasn’t convinced.
“This is a bad precedent that could be abused by later Presidents and will sadly tarnish his reputation,” Polis wrote of Biden’s decision. “When you become President, your role is Pater familias of the nation.”
“Hunter brought the legal trouble he faced on himself,” Polis added, “and one can sympathize with his struggles while also acknowledging that no one is above the law, not a President and not a President’s son.”
While as a father I certainly understand President @JoeBiden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country. This is a bad precedent that could be abused by later Presidents and will sadly tarnish his reputation.…
Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ), the former mayor of Phoenix, also expressed disappointment with the president, joining Polis as one of the few elected Democrats to openly criticize Biden’s decision.
“I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong,” Stanton posted to X. “This wasn’t a politically-motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies, and was convicted by a jury of his peers.”
I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong.
This wasn’t a politically-motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies, and was convicted by a jury of his peers. https://t.co/P31d4ILL1P
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) supported the pardon and admonished Republican critics for their hypocrisy over Donald Trump’s cabinet picks and his own felony conviction.
They should “take a look in the mirror,” Crockett told MSNBC.
“I will say, ‘Way to go, Joe.’”
Polis recently made news when he applauded Trump’s pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“I’m excited by the news that the President-Elect will appoint @RobertKennedyJr to @HHSGov. He helped us defeat vaccine mandates in Colorado in 2019 and will help make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and FDA,” the governor posted to X last week.
He later walked back the full-throated endorsement.
“I was raised in a way where I try to look at the glass as half-full,” Polis told CNN on Friday.
“Last time Donald Trump was president, he appointed a pharmaceutical lobbyist in charge of that agency: Alex Azar,” Polis said.
He added: “I think it’s important, during the confirmation process to, of course, make sure that this is somebody who won’t make his personal utterings and sayings into official policy, but will pursue policies on behalf of the American people, so I try to remain optimistic where I can.”
Subscribe to the LGBTQ Nation newsletter and be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.
