White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said President Biden still has no plans to pardon his son, Hunter Biden, who pleaded guilty to federal tax charges in September.
Hunter’s plea spared him from a public trial over his failure to pay taxes while he spent lavishly on drugs, escorts, luxury hotel stays, clothing and other personal items.
The plea also came after he was convicted of three felony gun charges in June. The first son, prosecutors said, lied on a mandatory gun purchase form by saying he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs.
After Hunter was convicted of the crimes, President Biden indicated he did not plan to pardon his son.
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Hunter Biden, son of President Biden, attends the Democratic National Convention at United Center in Chicago on Aug. 19. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
On Thursday, Jean-Pierre was asked again if President Biden had any intentions of pardoning Hunter, who is scheduled to be sentenced on the gun charges on Dec. 12 and the tax fraud charges on Dec. 16.
“We’ve been asked that question multiple times. Our answer stands, which is no,” the press secretary said.
Fox News senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich followed up on the question, asking if a commutation, or a lesser sentence, was off the table for Hunter.
Hunter Biden is seen after making a statement during a news conference outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., about testifying publicly to the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Dec. 13, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)
Heinrich reminded Jean-Pierre that she had previously said Biden would not consider a commutation of Hunter’s sentence.
“Yes, that stands,” Jean-Pierre said.
“You’re saying that still stands?” Heinrich asked for clarification.
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Hunter Biden and President Biden.
“Yeah,” Jean-Pierre responded.
The president’s son was indicted on three felonies and six misdemeanor counts alleging he evaded paying at least $1.4 million in taxes while simultaneously spending money on “drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything but his taxes,” according to the December 2023 indictment.
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Prosecutors also allege the tax returns Hunter ultimately did file falsely claimed that things like prostitutes, strip club visits, porn website subscriptions and other personal expenses were actually deductible business expenses.
The aim, according to the indictment, was to “evade assessment of taxes to reduce the substantial tax liabilities” that Hunter faced.
Fox News’ Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
