United States President Joe Biden announced on Monday (Manila Time) that he has pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, who had been involved in several legal cases, including federal gun and tax crimes.
The timing of this apparent presidential pardon comes just days before Hunter is scheduled to be sentenced.
In a statement released by the White House, President Biden confirmed the pardon he had been signed.
"Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter. 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," Biden said.
It should be noted that the White House had repeatedly stated that President Biden would not pardon or commute his son's sentences, especially considering Hunter’s struggles with addiction. Hunter Biden has also been a frequent target of Republicans, including President-elect Donald Trump.
"No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son," Biden said.
"There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution. In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough."
The President stated that he made the decision over the weekend. The president, along with his wife, First Lady Jill Biden, and their family, including Hunter, spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Nantucket, Massachusetts, before returning to Washington on Saturday evening.
"Here’s the truth: 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 – and once I made this decision this weekend, there was no sense in delaying it further," Biden said.
"I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision," he remarked.
Biden's son is supposedly scheduled to be sentenced for his conviction on federal gun charges on December 12 and for his tax evasion on December 16.
