White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre found herself in the hot seat this week, staunchly refusing to apologize for her previous assurances that President Joe Biden would not pardon his son, Hunter Biden—assurances now rendered meaningless by the president’s abrupt change of heart. Facing a deluge of questions during a tense press briefing, Jean-Pierre remained defiant, brushing aside accusations of misleading the public and claiming the president’s decision was driven by “changed circumstances.” It was a performance that seemed equal parts spin and stonewalling, with no sign of contrition for the administration’s shifting stance.
Jean-Pierre was quick to defend Biden’s controversial pardon of his son, citing the supposed pressures of an incoming administration led by President-elect Donald Trump. She pointed to Trump’s nominations of loyalists like Pam Bondi for attorney general and Kash Patel for FBI director as evidence of looming “retribution” against the Biden family. Patel, in particular, is known for his criticisms of the so-called “deep state,” a term that seems to send Washington insiders into fits of nervous hand-wringing. Jean-Pierre argued that these appointments created an “unprecedented” context that justified the president’s decision, though critics saw it more as a convenient excuse.
The press secretary also leaned heavily on support from key Democratic allies like Rep. Jim Clyburn and former Attorney General Eric Holder, while downplaying dissenting voices within her own party, such as Governors Jared Polis and Gavin Newsom. Her fallback defense seemed to boil down to the idea that Biden had wrestled with the decision and ultimately acted as a loving father protecting his son. It’s a narrative that plays well with sympathizers but does little to address the glaring optics of a president extending clemency to his own family member while holding public office.
When pressed on the hypocrisy of Biden’s move—particularly given his previous criticisms of Donald Trump’s complaints about a politicized justice system—Jean-Pierre dismissed comparisons as irrelevant. She waved off suggestions that Biden’s pardon sets a dangerous precedent, even as Trump prepares to take office with the possibility of granting clemency to January 6 rioters. Her argument? The two situations are “very different,” though she offered little in the way of specifics to back up that claim. Critics saw this as yet another example of political double standards, a “rules for thee but not for me” approach that undermines public trust.
As if the Hunter pardon weren’t contentious enough, Jean-Pierre left the door open for additional clemency actions by Biden before his term ends. While she refused to confirm specifics, she notably didn’t rule out the possibility of preemptive pardons for prominent Democrats like Adam Schiff, Liz Cheney, or Anthony Fauci. The suggestion that Biden could wield his clemency powers to shield political allies from potential scrutiny added fuel to an already smoldering fire. For many observers, the elder Biden’s sweeping defense of his son—complete with claims of “selective prosecution” and “unrelenting attacks”—was less about justice and more about circling the wagons around a family in political peril.
