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The online community is ablaze following Ana Navarro-Cárdenas' statement on social media, in which she suggested that former President Joe Biden should pardon his son, Hunter Biden, before his term ends.
On November 13, Navarro-Cárdenas took to her X account to share a tweet suggesting that President Biden should consider pardoning his son because such a move could preempt potential political retaliation, alluding to "clowns"—a likely reference to the incoming President-elect—seeking revenge against Joe Biden through his son —
"Dear @JoeBiden, pardon Hunter before these clowns go after him to take revenge on you. And while you're at it, give pre-emptive pardons to Liz Cheney, Kamala Harris, Adam Kinzinger, Jack Smith…and anybody else who may be on the enemies list of the promised retribution," Navarro-Cárdenas wrote.
As a result, Navarro-Cárdenas' comments sparked a fierce debate across social media, with users divided on the implications of such a move, with many suggesting that individuals who commit crimes should be held accountable for their actions and not escape consequences —
"Why would they need pardons? Are you preemptively assuming they are guilty of crimes? Criminals don't get a free pass," one commented.
Moreover, numerous users on X asserted that Hunter Biden is guilty and argued that, in this situation, President Joe Biden cannot intervene. Others expressed frustration, suggesting that Ana Navarro-Cárdenas is advocating for a criminal to be pardoned —
"Hunter Biden is guilty AF of selling political favors from his father and Biden's guilty of taking the bribes so he won't do anything," a user on X commented.
"So pardon those who committed ACTUAL crimes targeting Donald Trump? Good luck with that," another commented.
"Why are you still on Joe Biden's side after he happily welcomed back "literally hitler" yesterday? One would think you'd be more upset about it instead of asking him to pardon criminals," a netizen commented.
However, some users on X responded to the tweet with humor, suggesting that if Joe were to issue preemptive pardons for everyone, the list would be overwhelmingly long —
"The pre-emptive pardon list for Biden would be a mile long 😂," a netizen commented.
"Now why would you need preemptive pardons if you've done nothing wrong?," another commented.
"Why would they need pardoned? Are you admitting they've committed federal crimes?" a netizen commented.
As of now, President Biden has not responded to Ana Navarro-Cárdenas' tweet, nor has Navarro-Cárdenas addressed the reactions circulating online.
Exploring Hunter Biden's actions and the case for a Presidential pardon
According to AP News, the allegations and controversies surrounding Hunter Biden began gaining significant attention in 2014 when he joined the board of Burisma Holdings, a Ukrainian energy company, while Joe was serving as Vice President.
Moreover, in 2018, according to BBC, Hunter Biden was found guilty of illegally possessing a gun and lying about his drug use when he bought it. Also, in December 2023, Hunter had been accused of failing to pay taxes of at least $1.4 million on income he earned from overseas business dealings.
However, in 2023, he reached a plea agreement on two misdemeanor tax offenses, though the deal fell apart in court. Federal prosecutors later charged him with six tax-related crimes.
According to ABC News, Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House Press Secretary, declined to comment on whether President Biden plans to issue pardons as his term ends —
"I know pardons is going to be a big part of the questions that I get here over the next several weeks and a couple of months that we have. I don't have anything to share or any thought process on pardons. Once we have something to share, we certainly will share with that," Karine said.
According to ABC News, no son of a U.S. president has ever been sentenced or faced charges. Furthermore, Hunter Biden is scheduled to be sentenced next month for gun-related offenses as well as federal tax-related charges in a separate case. As of now, President Joe Biden has not publicly stated his position.
Joe Biden is the father of four children — two sons, Beau and Hunter, and two daughters, Naomi and Ashley.
