Notes on the Way

Special Hunter Biden pardon edition

No, the apple does not fall far from the tree…

---

Everybody knew that President Biden was lying through his teeth when he assured the American people—more than once!—that no, he would not pardon his wastrel son, Hunter. So yesterday’s news that he did so anyway came as no surprise. But why did he lie in the first place? Biden could easily have staved off questions about a pardon for Hunter with a simple “No comment.” Instead, he piously declared that “No one is above the law.” And having said that, he disgraced himself with a demonstration of gross hypocrisy, metaphorically flourishing his middle finger in the face of the American people.

A notable feature of the Hunter Biden pardon is its breadth and depth, covering any and all crimes that the First Son committed or may have committed from January 1, 2014, to Sunday, December 1, 2024. This naturally raises the suspicion that the Biden family has lots and lots of dirty laundry tucked away here and there, that it feared might get an airing during the Trump Administration. But really, enough is already known about the shady money-grubbing of the Biden family to conclude that the Biden Administration was as crooked as it was incompetent.

A ludicrous feature of the pardon is the President’s complaint that Hunter “was singled out only because he is my son.” Really? Hunter Biden was singled out for prosecution by the Biden Justice Department? One wonders what Attorney General Merrick Garland thinks of that charge. After all, the sweetheart plea agreement that the Justice Department tried and failed to slip past a federal judge on Hunter’s behalf was remarkably similar in scope to his pardon. AG Garland might well protest that hey, he did his best!

News of the Hunter pardon has driven online Democrats and progressives into another frenzy of outrage and lunacy. The comrades understand that by letting his son off the hook, Joe Biden has handed the incoming Trump Administration a precious political gift. “No one is above the law!” That was the cry justifying the Left’s long and ultimately unsuccessful lawfare campaign against Donald Trump. Now Joe Biden has reminded everybody that some people are above the law, e.g. felonious family members of the incumbent president. What a bummer! (See Substack Notes for numerous, hilarious examples of the meltdown.)

Finally, in defense of the Hunter Biden pardon, Democrats and progressives are citing Donald Trump’s pardon of his son-in-law’s father, Charles Kushner, who pled guilty to various tax-related crimes in 2005. Ah, but Kushner actually served sixteen months of his two-year sentence before his release in 2006, and his pardon came only in 2020. Hunter Biden, though, was convicted earlier this year of three federal firearms felonies and pled guilty to federal tax evasion charges, but he won’t be spending a day in prison—thanks to Dad. That’s not only a great deal—it’s fast, efficient customer service!

Now that Hunter’s been pardoned, it may be thought that Biden & Co. can sink no lower—that they have plumbed the depths of mendacity and moral squalor. but today is December 2, 2024, and January 20, 2025, is a long way off…