Former First Lady Jill Biden has defended President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon their son, Hunter Biden, saying the family feared he would face unfair treatment and possible imprisonment after Donald Trump returned to office.In an interview with CBS News Sunday Morning, Jill Biden said she believed the legal process against Hunter was unjust and that the political climate shifted following Trump’s election victory.
“The Justice Department changed, and I think the process was not fair to Hunter,” she said. “When Trump was elected, we felt things had changed, and we believed he would be targeted. We could not allow our son to go to jail over a charge that, in our view, rarely results in imprisonment.”
Joe Biden’s pardon drew widespread attention because he had repeatedly stated during his presidency that he would not use his executive authority to pardon his son. However, he reversed that position before leaving office.
Hunter Biden was convicted in June 2024 on three federal felony counts related to the purchase of a revolver in 2018 while struggling with drug addiction. Prosecutors said he falsely stated on federal paperwork that he was not using illegal drugs when he bought the firearm. In a separate case, he later pleaded guilty to nine tax-related charges.
The decision to grant the pardon prompted criticism from both Democrats and Republicans, with opponents arguing that it undermined Biden’s previous commitments.
Asked whether she encouraged the pardon, Jill Biden said she fully supported the move and agreed with her husband’s decision. She also suggested that Joe Biden’s preemptive pardons for several family members were motivated by concerns that they, too, could face politically motivated scrutiny or investigations.