In a move that could only be described as peak Trump, the former president didn’t hold back when addressing Joe Biden’s last-minute pardons, calling them hypocritical, self-serving, and a desperate attempt to protect his inner circle. As Biden exited the White House, he issued preemptive pardons to a laundry list of family members and political allies, including Anthony Fauci, Retired General Mark Milley, and key figures tied to the January 6 Committee. For Trump, this wasn’t just about clemency—it was about exposing what he sees as yet another example of Biden saying one thing and doing another.
During a conversation with Sean Hannity, Trump wasted no time pointing out the irony. Biden, after all, had made quite a show during his campaign of condemning the idea of preemptive pardons, particularly when whispers emerged that Trump might consider similar moves for his own children or close confidants like Rudy Giuliani. Back then, Biden had waxed poetic about America’s justice system and the dangers of undermining it. But, as Trump gleefully noted, those high-minded principles seemed to vanish when it came to protecting Biden’s own family and political allies.
Trump also used the opportunity to highlight a contrast with his own presidency. He revealed that he had been presented with the option of issuing preemptive pardons for himself and his allies but had declined. According to Trump, his administration had done nothing wrong, and issuing such pardons would have been unnecessary. Taking a dig at Biden, he argued that the outgoing president’s eleventh-hour clemency spree wasn’t about justice but about shielding his inner circle from scrutiny and creating a buffer for his own legacy.
Trump didn’t stop at calling out Biden’s hypocrisy. He took a moment to praise the perseverance of his own allies, like Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro, who faced legal and financial hardships during Biden’s presidency. Trump described them as patriots who refused to back down, even under significant pressure. In his view, the contrast between their resilience and Biden’s flurry of pardons painted a clear picture: one side stood by its principles, while the other rushed to cover its tracks.
The sharpest critique, however, came when Trump zeroed in on the most glaring omission from Biden’s pardon list: Biden himself. Trump, with a mix of sarcasm and pointed indignation, questioned why the man who granted clemency to nearly everyone in his orbit hadn’t seen fit to include himself. To Trump, this omission spoke volumes, suggesting that Biden’s actions were more about shielding others than addressing his own accountability. For Trump, the spectacle of last-minute pardons wasn’t about justice or fairness—it was about a president scrambling to rewrite the narrative as he walked out the door, leaving yet another controversy in his wake.
