Karine Jean-Pierre: ‘Hunter Was Singled Out’ in Pardon Decision, But ‘I Can’t Get into Hypotheticals’

The Biden White House, facing backlash from both the right and some on the left over President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden, explained the circumstances surrounding the Sunday evening announcement. During a flight to Angola on Monday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre addressed the controversy, shedding light on the president’s thought process.

Jean-Pierre suggested that if Vice President Kamala Harris had won the November election, President Biden would not have granted the pardon, although she quickly clarified that she didn’t want to delve into “hypotheticals.” She explained that Biden’s decision to pardon Hunter came after a long struggle and in response to what the president saw as a politically motivated attack on his son.

“In a good faith way, if you are looking at the facts of Hunter’s cases,” Jean-Pierre said, “you can’t reach any other conclusion, right?” She continued, emphasizing that Hunter was unfairly targeted because of his last name and his connection to the president. “What we have seen, not just us, there are other people who have commented on the president’s actions,” Jean-Pierre said.

“Hunter was singled out, and, because his last name was Biden because he was the president’s son. That’s what we saw. And so the president believed, enough is enough, and the president took action, and he also believes that they tried to break his son in order to break him.”

When pressed by ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett about whether the pardon would have happened had Harris won the election, Jean-Pierre remained tight-lipped. “I’m not gonna get into, into the election. It is a no-l can answer that, it’s a no,” she responded. “Where we are today, the President made this decision over the weekend.

He thought about it, he wrestled with it, and for him, he made this decision because he believed his son was being politically…” Haslett continued to probe, asking what had changed Biden’s mind, particularly in light of possible further prosecution under a Trump administration. Jean-Pierre responded, “He didn’t think that they would, they would continue to go after his son.

That’s what he believed.” Jean-Pierre closed by reiterating that “two things can be true”: Biden believes in the justice system but also feels his son was politically targeted.