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Hollywood star George Takei recently voiced his support for President Joe Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter Biden. The pardon followed Hunter Biden’s convictions for felony tax evasion and gun charges, reversing Biden’s earlier statements that he would not pardon his son. “I’m happy for the Biden family. This has been a long and undeserved nightmare. May they find peace these holidays,” Takei wrote.
In 1965, Takei was cast as Hikaru Sulu in Star Trek, a groundbreaking role at the time. Takei’s family had been forcibly relocated to a Japanese internment camp during World War II.
Critics argued the pardon undermined trust in Biden’s commitment to accountability, while some Democrats expressed disappointment over the president’s reversal.
IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joe Ziegler said, “No amount of lies or spin can hide the simple truth that the Justice Department nearly let the President’s son off the hook for multiple felonies. We did our duty, told the truth, and followed the law.”
Shapley and Ziegler added, “Anyone reading the President’s excuses now should remember that Hunter Biden admitted to his tax crimes in federal court, that Hunter Biden’s attorneys have targeted us for our lawful whistleblower disclosures, and that we are suing one of those attorneys for smearing us with false accusations.”
Shapley and Ziegler continued, “President Biden has the power to put his thumb on the scales of justice for his son, but at least he had to do it with a pardon explicitly for all the world to see rather than his political appointees doing it secretly behind the scenes.”
Representative Greg Stanton said, “I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong. This wasn’t a politically-motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies, and was convicted by a jury of his peers.”
Colorado Governor Jared Polis wrote, “While as a father I certainly understand President @JoeBiden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country. This is a bad precedent that could be abused by later Presidents and will sadly tarnish his reputation.”
Polis added, “When you become President, your role is Pater familias of the nation. Hunter brought the legal trouble he faced on himself, and one can sympathize with his struggles while also acknowledging that no one is above the law, not a President and not a President’s son.”
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said, “The president has lied from start to finish about his family’s corrupt influence peddling activities.”