President Joe Biden pardoned several members of his family, including his brother and sister, in his final minutes in office.
The announcement came about 15 minutes before Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. The statement came out as Biden and Trump stood in the Capitol rotunda, waiting for the president-elect to take the oath of office.
Biden issued pre-emptive pardons to James B. Biden, Sara Jones Biden, Valerie Biden Owens, John T. Owens, and Francis W. Biden.
‘The issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgment that they engaged in any wrongdoing, nor should acceptance be misconstrued as an admission of guilt for any offense,’ Biden said in his last act as president.
His brother James Biden had been pulled into House Republicans’ impeachment investigation of Joe Biden, which ultimately went no where.
However, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer had asked Trump’s Justice Department to investigate and prosecute James for allegedly making false statements to Congress.
Valerie Biden Owens, the sister of President Joe Biden, and James Biden, the brother of President Joe Biden, in Wilmington, Delaware, in June 2024
In his last act of President, Joe Biden pardoned several members of his family as Donald Trump prepared to take the oath of office
Biden also pardoned James’ wife Sara, his sister Valerie, her husband John and his younger brother Francis Biden.
The pardons were sweeping, covering all of their ‘nonviolent’ actions dating back to 2014.
Biden said his family was subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats, motivated solely by a desire to hurt me — the worst kind of partisan politics.’
‘Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,’ he said.
Comer said the pardons prove the family is corrupt.
‘President Biden’s preemptive pardons for the Biden Crime Family serve as a confession of their corruption as they sold out the American people to enrich themselves. Our investigation revealed that at least ten members of the Biden Crime Family and their associates raked in over $30 million by selling Joe Biden’s influence to corrupt foreign entities and individuals in China, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, and Kazakhstan,’ he said in a statement.
‘President Biden abused his public office to create a slush fund for his family. President Biden will go down as the most corrupt president in U.S. history, and our investigation will be remembered as one of the most successful ever conducted by Congress.’
In December, Biden pardoned his son Hunter after vowing not to. Hunter was facing sentencing in two criminal cases late last year.
The only family members missing from Monday’s list was wife Jill and daughter Ashley.
Earlier Monday Biden issued pre-emptive pardons from General Mike Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, former Rep. Liz Cheney and other lawmakers who investigated the January 6th riot in the Capitol.
