The remote island of Massachusetts, known for its distinctive wind-sculpted dunes and quaint cobblestone roads, has long been the chosen location for President Joe Biden and his relatives’ Thanksgiving gatherings. The secluded island of Nantucket also hosted the critical moments where Biden pondered crucial choices influencing his political tenure. His sons, Beau and Hunter, once advocated for his presidential run here; a suggestion he declined following Beau’s tragic demise due to brain cancer.
Two years ago, it repeated when Biden’s family rallied behind him for reelection, brushing aside widespread doubts about his capability to serve another term due to his age. Recounting the most recent event on the island, Biden made a decision that raised eyebrows amongst both his critics and supporters that could potentially dim his legacy even after he has stepped down.
Post-celebrating Thanksgiving weekend on Nantucket, Biden returned to Washington and announced an absolute and unreserved pardon for Hunter Biden that Sunday. Hunter faced both a conviction on federal gun crackdowns and guilt plea over tax evasion at a federal level. Despite his resolution against pardoning his child, Biden made an about-face, inciting the rhetoric that Hunter was used as a pawn in a political attack against him.
As expected, the subsequent reaction against the octogenarian outgoing head of state was immediate, fierce, and crossed the party lines. With merely over a month preceding his departure from office, the magnitude of this extensive pardon disclosed in his terminal presidential phase could significantly impact his long-term legacy.
This pardon is projected as a black stain on Biden’s legacy. His presidency that commenced in January 2021 was signified by his assurance to the citizens of sound management, trustworthy governance, and a regression to normalcy following the turbulent Trump tenure. Given the continued grappling with the COVID pandemic, Biden prioritized probate vaccination arrangement and the contentious mask mandate imposition.
Following a steady decrease in COVID deaths, the mask mandate was lifted, effectively enabling the public to continue their usual routines. Nevertheless, Biden’s term was far from smooth and witnessed considerable unrest. A four-decade high in inflation, the abrupt U.S. troops retreat from Afghanistan costing 13 soldiers’ lives, and the ongoing influx of undocumented immigrants via the southern border were amongst the hardest trials.
Major international disputes in Ukraine and Gaza Strip challenged America’s global influence. Further complicating Biden’s legacy was his pardon of his son’s dire legal circumstances. The diary entry by Biden on November 30, 2014, now appears with an eerie gloom, knowing it marked the last Thanksgiving meal shared with Beau.
The eldest of Biden’s sons, Beau, was a Delaware attorney general and National Guard member who had served in Iraq. Only six months following that last shared meal, he tragically succumbed to brain cancer at 46. This dealt an irreparable blow to his younger brother, triggering Hunter’s downward spiral into depression and inducing heavy drinking, drug abuse, and other forms of detrimental habits.
Hunter, a Yale graduate lawyer, engaged in several international financial transactions in Ukraine and China. These actions would eventually haunt Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign, attracting the Justice Department’s eye and subjecting him to scrutiny by Congressional Republicans establishing a controversial nurture over his father’s office.
Hunter Biden’s legal entanglement surfaced publicly last summer. A Delaware Court convicted him in June on three charges for misrepresenting his narcotics addiction on a firearms purchasing application back in 2018. Later in September, he conceded to federal tax evasion charges spanning from 2016 till 2019. Unfavorable verdicts awaited him on December 12th for firearm charges and on December 16th for tax evasion.
President Joe Biden’s broad pardon absolves his son’s engagement with both of these infractions, effectively putting an end to them. While the Constitution confers upon presidents expansive authority to pardon federal offenses, their application of such power often falls under criticism. In this case, Biden, the first president to pardon a child, has undoubtedly set an unprecedented example.