Biden’s Unprecedented Pardon | Saturday Extra

Summary

Morning Wire Podcast Summary
Episode: Biden’s Unprecedented Pardon | Saturday Extra
Release Date: December 7, 2024
Hosts: John Bickley and Georgia Howe
Guest: Eric Eggers, Vice President at the Government Accountability Institute and Co-Host of the Drill Down Podcast

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Introduction

In this episode of Morning Wire, presented by The Daily Wire, hosts John Bickley and Georgia Howe delve into President Joe Biden's surprising decision to pardon his son, Hunter Biden. This unprecedented move has sparked significant controversy and raised questions about potential implications for ongoing investigations into the Biden family's dealings.

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Biden’s Sweeping Pardon: Scope and Details

John Bickley opens the discussion by highlighting the unexpected nature of President Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter Biden. Contrary to previous assurances from the White House that Hunter would not receive a pardon, President Biden issued a comprehensive pardon covering any federal crimes Hunter may have committed over the past decade.

Key Points:

• Scope of the Pardon: The pardon extends immunity from any federal charges Hunter Biden may face, far beyond the specific charges of tax evasion and gun purchases that were publicly known.

• Implications for Future Prosecutions: Eric Eggers emphasizes that the pardon not only shields Hunter from known charges but also from "any allegations of which there are many, that he has been an unwitting or witting foreign agent" (01:36).

Notable Quote:

“What Joe Biden has effectively done is given his son a full pardon for any allegations of which there are many, that he has been an unwitting or witting foreign agent.”
— Eric Eggers (01:36)

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Impact on Biden Family Corruption Investigations

The conversation shifts to the broader context of ongoing investigations into the Biden family, particularly focusing on potential corruption and profiteering by Joe Biden and other family members.

Key Points:

• House Oversight Investigation: Led by Representative Comer, the committee has been assembling evidence through whistleblower testimonies, tax records, and bank records, which may implicate not just Hunter but also Joe Biden.

• Removal of Legal Pressure: The pardon removes a critical leverage point that federal authorities might have used to implicate President Biden, thereby potentially hindering the investigation (02:35).

• Potential for Broader Implications: Eggers suggests that this could be the first of multiple pardons within the Biden family, raising concerns about systemic safeguards against political manipulation of the pardon power.

Notable Quote:

“By giving Hunter Biden a full pardon, what Joe Biden effectively sets up is the removal of any pressure or leverage they might have used… to try to implicate Joe Biden.”
— Eric Eggers (02:35)

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Legal and Procedural Ramifications

John Bickley probes into the legal maneuvers surrounding Hunter Biden's case, particularly the problematic plea deal that initially appeared to resolve his charges.

Key Points:

• Failed Plea Deal: The proposed plea deal was undermined by a judge's assertion of lack of jurisdiction, leading to significant legal contention (06:28).

• Political Influence and Department of Justice: Eggers argues that Department of Justice and FBI officials may have attempted to manipulate outcomes, including pressuring Big Tech to censor damaging stories about Hunter Biden's laptop during the 2020 election cycle.

• Presidential Authority and Precedent: The pardon is characterized as the "biggest pardon in American history" by legal analysis, setting a concerning precedent for executive overreach and political favoritism.

Notable Quote:

“What this would be the latest… some would argue that the 2020 election, Joe Biden wouldn’t even been in position to be president to then pardon Hunter, had it not been for the work of Department of Justice officials and FBI officials telling Big Tech to censor any story about Hunter Biden's laptop.”
— Eric Eggers (06:28)

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Responses and Repercussions within the Democratic Party

The episode explores the internal and external reactions to the pardon, particularly the disappointment expressed by some Democrats and the potential political fallout.

Key Points:

• Democratic Disappointment: Some Democrats are shocked by the pardon, fearing it undermines integrity and fueling narratives that could be used against them.

• Impact on Trump's Pardoning Authority: The move by President Biden is seen as potentially giving former President Trump greater latitude to issue pardons, including controversial ones related to January 6th defendants, thereby complicating Democratic critiques of Trump’s use of presidential pardon powers.

• Erosion of Trust and Credibility: Eggers contends that Biden’s actions erode his credibility as a defender of democratic norms and unfairly damage the Democratic stance on protecting democracy from perceived Republican overreach.

Notable Quote:

“What Joe Biden has done, unfortunately, is erode any semblance of credibility he might have had that he was, quote, unquote, adult in the room… because he clearly did not do that.”
— Eric Eggers (09:37)

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Conclusion and Future Outlook

John Bickley wraps up the discussion by highlighting the irreversible damage to President Biden’s political capital and the potential for ongoing and future investigations into the Biden family’s activities. The episode underscores the significance of the pardon in reshaping political dynamics and judicial accountability.

Notable Quote:

“Sure seems like political capital permanently lost here.”
— John Bickley (09:37)

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Final Thoughts

This episode of Morning Wire provides a comprehensive analysis of President Biden's unprecedented pardon of Hunter Biden, examining its legal, political, and ethical implications. Guest Eric Eggers offers critical insights into how this move could impact ongoing investigations and the broader landscape of American politics, highlighting concerns about executive overreach and the erosion of trust in governmental institutions.

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This summary aims to capture the essence of the episode for those who haven’t listened, providing a detailed overview of the key discussions and expert opinions presented.

Transcript

[Eric Eggers]

I said I abide by the jury decision. I will do that. And I will not pardon him.

[John Bickley]

After months of vowing not to pardon his son Hunter on tax evasion and gun charges, President Biden reversed course, issuing a sweeping pardon that covers any federal crimes Hunter may have committed over the past decade. In this episode, we sit down with an expert to break down the scope of the pardon and its implications for potential future prosecutions of the Biden family. I'm Daley Weyer, Editor in chief. John Bickley, it's December 7th and this is a Saturday edition of Morning Wire.

[Daley Weyer]

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[John Bickley]

Joining us now is Eric Eggers, vice president at the Government Accountability Institute and co host of the Drill down podcast with Peter Schweitzer. Eric, thanks so much for coming on.

[Eric Eggers]

Hey, it's my pleasure, John. It's an important story.

[John Bickley]

Look, we witnessed this week something we were told repeatedly would not happen by the White House, by President Biden himself. Again and again, he issued a full and unconditional pardon to his son, Hunter. I want to ask you first about the nature of that pardon. What exactly has the president given his son immunity from?

[Eric Eggers]

I think the president has given his son immunity from any and all federal charges spanning for a decade, which is in a much larger context than the actual charges Hunter Biden was facing. He was facing sentencing over three different charges related to a purchase of a gun and tax evasion allegations. But what Joe Biden has effectively done is given his son a full pardon for any allegations of which there are many, that he has been an unwitting or witting foreign agent. All the international business dealings that Hunter Biden has done over the last decade, and it's very specific, it starts in January of 2014. That's three months before Hunter Biden's business relationships with the Ukrainian natural gas company Barisma began. And that's when a lot of the legal issues may have emerged. So what Joe Biden has done is not just said, Hunter Biden will not face any charges from what he's actually been accused of, but what many people suspect he's actually guilty of.

[John Bickley]

And what's the context for this? There are some investigations ongoing about Hunter and Biden family corruption. Can you give us a breakdown of what's taking place right now on Capitol Hill that may be impacted by this?

[Eric Eggers]

There's been an ongoing House oversight investigation led by the committee of Representative Comer. And thanks to whistleblower testimony, thanks to tax records, thanks to bank records they've been able to get, they were starting to put together, I think, a very comprehensive puzzle that showed not just what Hunter Biden was doing, but how Joe Biden and other Biden family members may have personally profited from it. That, I think, actually is the biggest takeaway from this. By giving Hunter Biden a full pardon, what Joe Biden effectively sets up is the removal of any pressure or leverage they might have used, they being federal authorities, to try to implicate Joe Biden. Because, as you noted, this is something that we were told would never happen. We were told that Hunter Biden would never be pardoned. But what else have we been told? Consistently, we've been told that Joe Biden was nowhere near any of Hunter Biden's business dealings. It began with, he didn't even know anything about Hunter Biden's business dealings. Well, then it was. Well, we had no actual conversation about it. Then it was, no, I never actually spoke to any of his business people. And then it was, no, Joe Biden never personally profited off of any of Hunter Biden's business dealings. That's what the committee was investigating. That's what the bank records may have revealed. And that, in some sense, is what this pardon may have eliminated, any actual eventual prosecution for Hunter Biden. And then eventually Joe Biden, and I would say many people are predicting that this will not be the last Biden to see a pardon.

[John Bickley]

Yeah, let's get into that. I wanted to bring that up because limiting how much action can be taken against Hunter doesn't mean an investigation into alleged Biden family corruption has to end. What are we seeing in terms of Biden's brother, Jim Biden, and the allegations swirling around him?

[Eric Eggers]

So legal scholars have pointed out a couple of interesting things. Number one, the elimination of the federal tax charges doesn't necessarily preclude state tax charges from being filed, because oftentimes they are joined because you submit your state taxes at the same time as submitting federal taxes. But the second piece of this is that Jim Biden has been adjacent to or a part of many of the business dealings that Hunter Biden did with Joe Biden. And so if what's actually being concerned is these fair violations, these Foreign Agent Registration act violations, of which, by the way, Hunter Biden admitted in an email that, hey, we should probably register for this. Jim Biden is right there with them. And so when you have phone calls with business people from China, when you have business dealings in Ukraine and you have business dealings feelings in some of the darkest corners of the developed world in terms of the lack of transparency and very questionable business practices, you know, many of Hunter Biden's business associates have been accused of bribery in other contexts. So I think that's very much what the committee was looking into. And I think if Hunter Biden was potentially guilty of that, there's no reason to think Jim Biden wasn't guilty of it as well.

[John Bickley]

What kind of response have we seen from the committee comer and others? Have they given us any signals about their next actions?

[Eric Eggers]

They have expressed some disappointment and in the fact that Joe Biden has gone against what he and many people of his administration have repeatedly signaled they would do, which is not give Hunter Biden a pardon. But there's also some suggestion that now that Hunter Biden doesn't face any actual charges, he can't plead the Fifth. So he may now actually be forced and compelled to testify if he does get called into the committee hearing and they can ask harder questions because Hunter Biden no longer faces the threat of incriminating himself.

[John Bickley]

Yeah, that's an interesting wrinkle for sure. Now, President Biden said that his. His son has been politically targeted. That's why he's pardoning him. But he's also glossing over a major piece of this, which was the extremely problematic plea deal that Hunter originally got. Can you walk us through what happened with that which really opened this can of worms for Hunter on these felony charges?

[Eric Eggers]

I think you raise an excellent point. And that is to say, if not only Hunter Biden's personal attorney, but the attorneys for the Biden administration's Department of justice had gotten their way, this would have gone away if not for the questioning and ultimate refusal of a judge who said, wait a minute, you're telling me I don't have jurisdiction over this? What would the appropriate remedy be? And the lawyers, again a Department of justice attorney and Hunter Biden's personal attorney, said, well, that would be the political process. So that would have been, I think, an insane miscarriage of justice. Maybe greater, I think definitely greater than the one we're currently seeing at Least this is a legal move. The president can pardon anyone he wants. Although people are saying this is by far the most sweeping and biggest pardon in America history, per some legal analysis, but exactly. So this would be the latest. You know, remember this. Some would argue that the 2020 election, Joe Biden wouldn't even been in position to be president to then pardon Hunter, had it not been for the work of Department of Justice officials and FBI officials telling Big Tech to censor any story about Hunter Biden's laptop and the business dealings details that that laptop contained that may have, in some analysis, swung the election. So you go from the Department of Justice officials working with Big Tech to censor the story four years ago, that kept it from being politically influential to then you had the desire to move and get rid of these charges based on an effort to kind of strong arm this judge. And then you had, when it looked like Joe Biden was politically vulnerable, the unprecedented move of telling the most powerful person in the world that is President Joe Biden, that he's not allowed to run for reelection anymore, despite every indication that he wanted to, because they were trying to find somebody that would be more politically viable. That didn't work either. And so the only tool Joe Biden had left in his arsenal was to do the thing he said for years he would not do, which is pardon Hunter.

[John Bickley]

A remarkable sequence of events, to say the least. Final question. There are some Democrats that are really expressing disappointment, even shock at President Biden's actions here. And part of that reason is they say, look, this gives Trump license to issue his own pardons. January 6th. Defendants are often cited. What does this do in terms of Democrats arguments about Trump's power as the president?

[Eric Eggers]

Yeah, I think what it undermines more than anything, John, is Joe Biden's argument that he was the sole protector of democracy and American ideals. And that is now gone between Democrats saying that, you know, you couldn't vote for Trump because democracy was on the ballot, and yet they ran a candidate who received zero primary votes, and now them saying that Donald Trump was the one that would weaponize the Department of Justice and, and go after political opponents. In fact, now you see that justice is being upended by Joe Biden's own actions because Hunter Biden pled guilty himself. And at every turn, the Justice Department said, no, this is something that's a serious charge. So I think what Joe Biden has done, unfortunately, is erode any semblance of credibility he might have had that he was, quote, unquote, adult in the room. And the one that would protect American democratic norms, because he clearly did not do that.

[John Bickley]

Sure seems like political capital permanently lost here. Eric, thanks so much for joining us.

[Eric Eggers]

Mr. Bickley, always a pleasure.

[John Bickley]

That was Eric Eggers, vice president at the Government Accountability Institute and co host of the Drill down podcast with Peter Schweitzer. And this has been an extra edition of Morning Wire.