Americans’ trust in institutions was further eroded this week. I’m referring to President Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter. This one’s different.

Presidential pardons have been around since George Washington. But no president ever promised to not pardon someone – and then went back on his word and pardoned that individual. And no president ever gave such a blanket pardon as Joe Biden gave his son Hunter, one covering the 10 years that Hunter has either been convicted of crimes or that the Justice Department didn’t fully investigate. It’s unprecedented.

This comes after Biden framed his presidency around restoring trust in institutions after Trump spent four years sowing mistrust in them, including accusing the Justice Department of being “weaponized” against him. Biden echoed similar sentiments in pardoning Hunter. “Here’s the truth: I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice.”

So, let me get this straight: the Biden Justice Department was weaponized against Hunter Biden. The Justice Department would disagree.

But let’s say Trump and Biden are right about some bureaucrats in the Justice Department and IRS who have abused their power and acted unethically. They ought to be held accountable. That would help restore Americans’ trust in institutions.

What erodes trust is for President Biden to appeal to emotion by hoping “Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision.” I don’t understand. I’m the father of three adult children. If one was convicted of a crime, I couldn’t pardon him. In the US, the president has the sole authority to grant pardons for federal crimes. For Joe Biden, family came before country. That’s why US Senator Gary Peters, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, called Biden’s pardon “wrong.” “This was an improper use of power, it erodes trust in our government, and it emboldens others to bend justice to suit their interests.”

This will come back to haunt the Biden legacy. And God only knows what President Trump, not a particularly principled man, will do in light of Biden’s pardon.

As I said, it’s not been a good week for Americans’ trust in institutions.

Written by Mike Metzger for Widening Our Imagination ~ December 4, 2024