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Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., called out President Biden for going back on his word and pardoning his son, Hunter, on Wednesday, calling the move "disappointing."
Aguilar, who chairs the House Democratic caucus, said he understood Biden's decision "as a father," but argued the pardon did not uphold the rule of law. Rep. Ted Lieu, who joined Aguilar in Wednesday's press conference, did not comment on the pardon.
"As a father, I understand it, and I get it. But as someone who has spent a lot of time at this podium talking about the importance of respecting the rule of law, it's disappointing," Aguilar said.
"The president gave his word and said publicly that he wasn't going to give a pardon and then he did, so that part is disappointing. I believed him when he said he wasn't," he said.
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Aguilar joins a number of Democrats who have openly criticized Biden's pardon. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that he also was "disappointed" with Biden's decision.
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"With everything the president and his family have been through, I completely understand the instinct to protect Hunter, but I took the president at his word," Newsom told Politico, adding that he "can't support the decision."
In a statement announcing the pardon, Biden took aim at what he described as a politically motivated investigation.
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"No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong," the president wrote.
Biden had vowed multiple times that he would not intervene in his son's case, first in June when his son was convicted on three felony firearm charges, and then in September after Hunter pleaded guilty to federal charges of tax evasion.
"I am not going to do anything," Biden said this summer. "I will abide by the jury’s decision."
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