Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that President Joe Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter was a “labor of love.”
Host Jake Tapper said, “So President Biden, speaking of pardons, told the American people again and again, especially while he was running against Trump and trying to contrast himself against Trump, he said again and again he would not pardon his son Hunter. Then, a week ago, he turned around and gave Hunter not just a pardon but a blanket pardon for any crimes he may or may not have committed in the last 11 years, covering not just the gun and tax charges and convictions but also anything he did while in the throes of addiction involving Burisma, his alleged influence peddling dealings with the Chinese government Chinese companies. Your colleague, Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado, said that the Hunter Biden pardon ‘further erodes Americans’ faith that the Justice System is fair and equal for all.’ Do you agree? Do you have any concerns about this pardon?”
Durbin said, “Listen, Joe Biden is my friend. I’ve known him for over 20 years and I’ll tell you most conversations I have with him is about his family. This is a man who loves his children and has gone through quite an ordeal, having lost a former wife and child in an automobile accident and seeing the two boys, Beau and Hunter, go through serious hospital stays and try to rebuild their lives. If I have to have a bias in this area, it’s a loving parent who wants to protect his child. I understand that situation, and I understand Michael Bennett’s observation. He promised he wouldn’t do it and now he’s doing it. But it’s a labor of love as far as I’m concerned from a loving father.”
Follow Pam Key on X @pamkeyNEN
