President Biden officially pardoned his son Hunter on Sunday, and come Monday morning, the hosts of “The View” were pretty pleased to see it. What they didn’t love, though, was the “hypocritical pearl-clutching” that’s happening among Republicans.
For host Whoopi Goldberg, the move wasn’t surprising, simply because all presidents use the power of the pardon — as she pointed out, Donald Trump granted 237 acts of clemency, 143 pardons and 94 commutations during his first term.
“It is a president’s prerogative. You know, people can say, ‘Why are you doing that?’ But that’s what presidents do,” she said. “Every time, they do it. Every time, they pardon somebody. So I’m not sure why the pearl clutching is happening now, except that that’s what folks want to do. But it seems kind of foolish.”
Indeed, the move has proven unpopular with Republicans. Daily Wire founder Ben Shapiro was among those who attacked the elder Biden online for it, saying the president has “always been a venal liar who utilized his political power to pursue familial gain.”
Shapiro did not point out that multiple Trump children were given jobs in their father’s White House and made money off said positions, and Trump also pardoned his son-in-law’s father for witness tampering, among other crimes.
The president-elect has since appointed that same man, Charles Kushner, as ambassador to France, which host Sunny Hostin quickly pointed out.
“Do you know what a nice, cushy job that is, that any felon would like?” Hostin marveled. “So, please with the hypocritical pearl-clutching by this country.”
You can watch the full discussion from “The View” in the video above.
