WH Won’t Rule Out Commutation for Hunter Biden

(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday declined to rule out whether President Joe Biden will commute his son Hunter Biden’s sentence following his conviction on federal felony charges.

While onboard Air Force One, Jean-Pierre reportedly declined to rule out a presidential commutation for Hunter Biden when asked by reporters, despite both the White House and President Biden himself previously having ruled out issuing a pardon for Hunter Biden.

Jean-Pierre reportedly said, “As we all know, the sentencing hasn’t even been scheduled yet,” when asked about a potential commutation and noted that she had not spoken to the president about the issue since the verdict.

Biden told ABC News in an interview last week that he would rule out issuing a pardon for his son and vowed to accept the outcome of the trial, which was ongoing at the time. He later issued a statement after the verdict vowing to “accept the outcome of this case and … continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal.”

“He was very clear, very upfront, obviously very definitive,” Jean-Pierre said of Biden’s comments about a pardon, but said that when it comes to a commutation, “I just don’t have anything beyond that.”

According to the Justice Department, a presidential commutation could reduce, partially or totally, a person’s sentence once it has begun, “but it does not change the fact of conviction, imply innocence, or remove civil disabilities that apply to the convicted person.”