WASHINGTON — The White House said on Thursday that President Joe Biden will not pardon his son Hunter if he is convicted of the charges against him.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked about Hunter Biden’s case multiple times in Thursday’s press briefing, including if the President would pardon his son.
“I’m really not gonna say anything more than what I shared yesterday – this is a personal matter for Hunter Biden, this is a personal issue,” she said. “And as you know, this has been done in an independent way by the Department of Justice, it has been led by a Trump-appointed prosecutor, and I’m just not going to comment beyond what I said yesterday.”
When pressed by reporters if Biden would pardon his son, Jean-Pierre said “no” quickly and moved on to another question.
The comments come just a day after Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to federal charges after a chaotic day in court that saw his original plea deal collapse and both sides go back to negotiate terms of the deal.
The original deal said prosecutors would recommend probation for the tax violations, while a separate felony gun charge would be dropped if Biden agreed to never own a gun again.
Noreika asked the legal team if the gun charge would be diverted until Biden completes certain requirements, saying she did not believe that the judiciary would normally oversee the agreement.
Another issue was when Noreika asked if Biden could be charged with a future crime. The defense said they believe the deal would prohibit Biden from being charged but the prosecution said no. That led Biden’s lawyer, Chris Clark, to say they’ll “rip it up”, referring to the deal.
Jean-Pierre declined to answer any questions related to Hunter Biden at Wednesday’s press briefing, referring reporters to the Justice Department and Biden’s legal team.
