Joe Biden’s Unpardonable Pardons

It is a sad end to a failing presidency. After years of promising the public that he would never pardon his son Hunter, Joe Biden did exactly that. The pardon covered not just the two criminal convictions awaiting Hunter’s sentencing but also possible actions that have yet to be investigated or even identified. Biden reportedly is considering pardons for many others, including former representative Liz Cheney (vice chairwoman of the January 6 congressional committee), Dr. Anthony Fauci, and General Mark Milley (former head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff).

Not only would such broad use of the pardon power mark a cynical development following Biden’s own unprecedented lawfare campaign against Donald Trump, it would also disregard the reasons why the Constitution gives this power to the president.

About the Author

John Yoo

John Yoo is the Thomas W. Smith Senior Fellow at the Civitas Institute, University of Texas at Austin; Emanuel S. Heller Professor of Law at the University of California at Berkeley; and a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is a co-author of the just-released two-volume American Constitutional Law (Routledge, 2026).

RD

About the Author

Robert J. Delahunty

Robert J. Delahunty is a fellow at the Claremont Institute’s Center for the American Way of Life.

Featured Tags

It is a sad end to a failing presidency. After years of promising the public that he would never pardon his son Hunter, Joe Biden did exactly that. The pardon covered not just the two criminal convictions awaiting Hunter’s sentencing but also possible actions that have yet to be investigated or even identified. Biden reportedly is considering pardons for many others, including former representative Liz Cheney (vice chairwoman of the January 6 congressional committee), Dr. Anthony Fauci, and General Mark Milley (former head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff).

Not only would such broad use of the pardon power mark a cynical development following Biden’s own unprecedented lawfare campaign against Donald Trump, it would also disregard the reasons why the Constitution gives this power to the president.

About the Author

John Yoo

John Yoo is the Thomas W. Smith Senior Fellow at the Civitas Institute, University of Texas at Austin; Emanuel S. Heller Professor of Law at the University of California at Berkeley; and a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is a co-author of the just-released two-volume American Constitutional Law (Routledge, 2026).

RD

About the Author

Robert J. Delahunty

Robert J. Delahunty is a fellow at the Claremont Institute’s Center for the American Way of Life.