President Joe Biden’s sudden and unexpected (by some) issuance of a broad pardon to his son Hunter continues to ripple throughout the political world. The Regime Media that so faithfully served Biden are now dutifully carrying his water in an attempt to dilute the legacy fallout that Biden will invariably suffer as a result.
Here’s how Mary Bruce closed out her report for ABC World News Tonight:
MARY BRUCE: Despite his repeated promises not to issue this pardon, clearly, the charges against his son continued to weigh heavily on the president. Now tonight, The White House concedes that Donald Trump was a factor here, that the president was concerned that he wouldn't let up, that a Trump administration would go after Hunter. David.
DAVID MUIR: Mary Bruce, leading us off from The White House. Mary, thank you.
It is fitting that the chief Biden apple polisher comes forth in order to try to mitigate the story by injecting one of the narratives we warned you about. Namely, that Kash Patel coming down the pike was what pushed the Bidens over the edge.
The rest of ABC’s report was replacement-level Regime Media, but do note the slight hint that Hunter may have engaged in criminality beyond the scope of the crimes mentioned in the pardon:
BRUCE: But now he's received a sweeping pardon, covering not just those charges, but any uncharged crimes between 2014 and 2024.
Over at CBS, Chief White House Correspondent Ed O’Keefe did his best to push Regime narrative:
ED O’KEEFE: The pardon came just a day after President Elect Trump chose Kash Patel to run the FBI. A right-wing operative who has criticized Hunter Biden and vowed to go after Trump's political rivals.
Again, the insistence on tying the pardon to Patel. As if Biden wasn’t always going to pardon Hunter.
It is worth noting that the pardon has given the Regime Media license to talk about things previously verboten. Remember the IRS whistleblowers?
O’KEEFE: Gary Shapley, an IRS investigator who worked on the Hunter Biden tax evasion case, took issue with the president’s statement that his son faced prosecution, "Only because he's my son, and that is wrong."
GARY SHAPLEY: If the Department of Justice truly is fair and treats every individual the same, then there is no way they could have not charged Hunter Biden with committing these acts.
The Regime Media suppressed these whistleblowers when their testimony would’ve been the most impactful. With Hunter in the clear, it’s safe to hear from these guys.
NBC, to their credit, were the only network to point out that the pardon covered Hunter’s tenure at Burisma- speaking of former taboo topics now OK to talk about:
KELLY O’DONNELL: The pardon is sweeping, covering not only his son's felony convictions on firearms charges and tax evasion, where he faced potential prison time at sentencing this month. But the president provided more than a decade of blanket protection, preventing further federal prosecution for any offenses dating back to January 2014, months before the younger Biden joined the board of a Ukrainian energy company while his father was vice president.
Unfortunately, the report closed out with a series of whataboutisms meant to mitigate the damage of Biden’s pardon:
O’DONNELL: And notably, when he was in office in his first term, President Trump pardoned a member of his family by marriage: daughter Ivanka’s father in law Charles Kushner, who he’s now selected to be the next Ambassador to France.
This story is not going away any time soon. The Regime Media’s proclivity to make inconvenient stories “go away” may well be what got us here in the first place.
Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective network evening newscasts on Monday, December 2nd, 2024:
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
12/2/24
6:32 PM
DAVID MUIR: But we do begin tonight with the backlash, after President Biden pardoned his son Hunter, issuing a quote: “full and unconditional” pardon to his son. It was during my interview with the president in Normandy in June I pressed the president on this very issue. The president told me he would not pardon Hunter. But last night he did, issuing a statement saying he believes his son was selectively and unfairly prosecuted. Writing, “no reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter's cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out because he is my son, and that is wrong.” Tonight, Republicans and many Democrats blasting the move. President Elect Trump saying the pardon itself is an abuse and miscarriage of justice. ABC's Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce leading us off tonight.MARY BRUCE: Tonight, the fallout from President Biden's stunning reversal. Issuing a full and unconditional pardon of his son Hunter, something for months the president insisted he would not do. Empathic when David pressed him in June:
MUIR: Will you accept the jury's outcome, their verdict, no matter what it is?
JOE BIDEN: Yes.
MUIR: And have you ruled out a pardon for your son?
BIDEN: Yes.
BRUCE: But now, just weeks before President Elect Donald Trump is set to return to The White House, the president saying Hunter was "selectively and unfairly prosecuted." The Biden family, we've learned, discussed the possibility of a pardon while spending the Thanksgiving holiday together in Nantucket. The president reaching his final decision Sunday, making it official just hours later. Writing in a statement -- "It is clear that Hunter was treated differently. 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, and that is wrong." Adding, "There is no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough." Jill Biden, who was often seen in the courtroom supporting her son, today backing her husband.
JILL BIDEN: Of course I support the pardon of my son.
BRUCE: Hunter Biden was convicted in June on federal charges for lying on a gun form. And in September, he pleaded guilty in a last-minute deal to nine tax-related charges, accused of avoiding paying $1.4 million in taxes while living lavishly. Taxes he had since paid back. He was scheduled to be sentenced later this month in each case, potentially facing more than a decade in prison.
DAN ABRAMS: It's a very tough argument to make that if he wasn't Hunter Biden he would have been charged with this gun crime. One gun, not used in a crime, the person has no criminal record.
BRUCE: But now he's received a sweeping pardon, covering not just those charges, but any uncharged crimes between 2014 and 2024. For months, the president tried to avoid any appearance of interfering with his son's cases.
BIDEN: I'm not going to do anything. I said I'd abide by the jury decision, and I will do that. And I will not pardon him.
BRUCE: But now, saying: "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." Adding, "I hope Americans will understand why a father and a president would come to this decision." Trump has vowed retribution against his political opponents, and for years attacked Hunter and the Biden family. His team tonight saying President Biden's decision bolsters their case that the Justice Department has been weaponized. Trump posting that the pardon was an "abuse and miscarriage of justice." And it's not just Republicans on The Hill tonight- some Democrats questioning the president's move to pardon his own son.
MAGGIE HASSAN: I expect all presidents to make sure that justice is carried out independently, and I wish the president had kept his word.
BRUCE: Despite his repeated promises not to issue this pardon, clearly, the charges against his son continued to weigh heavily on the president. Now tonight, The White House concedes that Donald Trump was a factor here, that the president was concerned that he wouldn't let up, that a Trump administration would go after Hunter. David.
MUIR: Mary Bruce, leading us off from The White House. Mary, thank you.
CBS EVENING NEWS
12/2/24
6:30 PM
NORAH O’DONNELL: Good evening. I'm Norah O'Donnell and we begin with a lot of news here in Washington, and the fallout from President Biden's decision to grant a sweeping pardon for his son. Hunter Biden was said to be sentenced to ten days from now on a felony gun conviction in Delaware, and then on separate tax charges in California days later. Republicans and some Democrats are criticizing the president’s decision after he previously said many times that he would not pardon his son. President-Elect Donald Trump pounced on the move, calling it an abuse and miscarriage of justice, and hinted that he plans to pardon those convicted of the assault at the U.S. Capitol Building in 2021. President Biden contends that his son was targeted for political reasons. But today the special counsel who investigated Hunter Biden said there's no evidence of vindictive or selective prosecution of the president's son. Ed O'Keefe has more details and reaction tonight on the pardoning of Hunter Biden, with the president traveling today to Africa.
ED O’KEEFE: Arriving in Angola today, President Biden ignored questions about the pardon of his son.
REPORTER: Mr. President!
O’KEEFE: While at The White House --
O’KEEFE: How relieved are you by the pardon of Hunter, Dr. Biden?
The First Lady offered this after unveiling Christmas decorations:
JILL BIDEN: Of course I support the pardon of my son.
O’KEEFE: The decision came after the president and his press secretary had spent more than a year claiming a pardon was out of the question.
BIDEN: I said I would abide by the jury decision. And I will do that, and I will not pardon him.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE We've been asked that question multiple times. Our answer stands, which is no.
O’KEEFE: The sweeping nature of the pardon clears his son of all the crimes he's committed or may have committed over ten years.
JEFFREY CROUCH: Well, it’s unprecedented: no president has ever pardoned their child before.
O'KEEFE: Pardon expert Jeffrey Crouch says its scope is similar to the clemency Gerald Ford gave Richard Nixon, who resigned amid the Watergate scandal.
CROUCH: It is about as broad as any pardon I'm aware of. It includes pretty much any potential federal offense in a way that includes anything that happens within that particular time range.
O’KEEFE: The pardon came just a day after President Elect Trump chose Kash Patel to run the FBI. A right-wing operative who has criticized Hunter Biden and vowed to go after Trump's political rivals. The president, in fact, suggested his son would remain a target of the incoming administration, saying, "There's no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough." But several Democrats today said Biden had gone too far, calling the pardon improper and unwise.
GARY SHAPLEY: The crimes are very serious and this isn't singling out one individual.there…
O’KEEFE: Gary Shapley, an IRS investigator who worked on the Hunter Biden tax evasion case, took issue with the president’s statement that his son faced prosecution, "Only because he's my son, and that is wrong."
SHAPLEY: If the Department of Justice truly is fair and treats every individual the same, then there is no way they could have not charged Hunter Biden with committing these acts.
O’KEEFE: It was quite striking to see several Democratic governors and lawmakers say that while they understand a father’s concern for his son, the president tarnished his legacy and put the interests of his family ahead of his country. They are also worried it could embolden Trump to abuse the same clemency powers once he takes office. Norah.
O’DONNELL: Ed O’Keefe at The White House tonight. Ed, thank you.
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
12/2/24
6:31 PM
LESTER HOLT: Good evening and welcome. Sharp criticism of President Biden's turn-about and decision to grant a full unconditional pardon to his son Hunter is reverberating on both sides of the political fault lines tonight. The president’s characterization of the criminal cases against his son as politicized and unfair seen as particularly irksome to some fellow Democrats who worry it undermines confidence in the justice system. But it is Republicans tonight who are most outspoken in their responses, calling out the president for lying after previously insisting he would not pardon his son. Kelly O'Donnell with us now with late developments.
KELLY O’DONNELL: After wielding presidential power to protect his son Hunter Biden from a potential prison sentence with a full and unconditional pardon, tonight, President Biden is facing sharp criticism from Democrats and Republicans, even as some express sympathy for Joe Biden, the father.
TOMMY TUBERVILLE: If it was my son, I’d pardon him, too. But here’s what I didn’t like. Don't lie to us. Don’t tell us you're not going to it and then do it.
O’DONNELL: Arizona congressman, Democrat Greg Stanton.
GREG STANTON: I'm pretty angry. Because it’s going to be incredibly important that political leaders of both parties stand up for the Independence of the Department of Justice.
O’DONNELL: President Biden and White House officials repeatedly insisted there would be no pardon.
JOE BIDEN: I said I'd abide by the jury decision. I will do that and I will not pardon him.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: We have been asked that question multiple times. Our answer stands which is no.
O’DONNELL: Tonight, on a three-day visit to Africa, the president did not respond to reporters' questions.
REPORTER: Mr. President, will you answer a few questions?
REPORTER: But at a White House Christmas event, First Lady Jill Biden expressed her support for the pardon.
JILL BIDEN: Of course, I support the pardon of my son.
O’DONNELL: The pardon was first reported by NBC News Sunday night and shortly thereafter, President Biden explained his grant of clemency in a statement. The president asserted, “I have watched my son being selectively and unfairly prosecuted.” The pardon is sweeping, covering not only his son's felony convictions on firearms charges and tax evasion, where he faced potential prison time at sentencing this month. But the president provided more than a decade of blanket protection, preventing further federal prosecution for any offenses dating back to January 2014, months before the younger Biden joined the board of a Ukrainian energy company while his father was vice president.
Blaming a heated environment, the president argued that raw politics has infected this process. He invoked his son's recovery from addiction. There has been an effort to break Hunter who has been five and a half years sober and claimed his political adversaries could pose future risk to his family, writing, in trying to break Hunter, they have tried to break me and there is no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough.
HOLT: And Kelly, President-Elect Trump also weighed in today.
O’DONNELL: He did. Mr. Trump reacted in a social media post indirectly, by raising the convictions of January 6th rioters as an abuse and miscarriage of justice. And notably, when he was in office in his first term, President Trump pardoned a member of his family by marriage: daughter Ivanka’s father in law Charles Kushner, who he’s now selected to be the next Ambassador to France.
HOLT: All right. Kelly O’ Donnell. Thank you.
