Four years before President Biden shocked the nation with the pardon of his son Hunter, the legacy media wildly theorized that President-elect Donald Trump would pardon his own children before he left office in January 2021.
On Dec. 1, 2020, The New York Times ran the headline "Trump Has Discussed With Advisers Pardons for His 3 Eldest Children and Giuliani," alleging that the then-president was mulling "pre-emptive pardons" to Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump as well as his son-in-law Jared Kushner. The report even alleged that Trump was considering issuing pardons "for crimes they have not yet committed — essentially a prospective get-out-of-jail-free card."
Ultimately, Trump never issued pardons for his adult children nor Giuliani but other news organizations followed the Times' lead.
"If you had to build a 2020 time capsule in advance, this is probably something that you would have invented to put into the 2020 time capsule," MSNBC star Rachel Maddow told viewers with a grin while holding up a copy of the Times report.
MSNBC and CNN went wall to wall hyping the Times report.
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CNN ran a similar report titled "The legal threats and headaches fueling pardon appeals from Trump’s family and friends," noting "Trump’s three eldest children have faced various legal entanglements" over the years, citing Don Jr. and Kushner's involvement in the Trump Tower meeting with Russians who claimed to have had dirt on Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election, which was investigated by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Neither Don Jr. nor Kushner were ever charged with any crimes by Mueller.
"In our politics lead now, a source tells CNN that President Trump, the outgoing president, is discussing preemptive pardons for people close to him. That could include his three eldest children, Don jr. Ivanka and Eric, his son in law, Jared Kushner and his personal attorney, rudy giuliani, none of whom, as of this afternoon, have been even charged with. much less convicted of any crime," CNN's Jake Tapper said on air.
"Is the president now considering pardons for members of the Trump family, including himself? ABC News' David Muir teased at the beginning of "World News Tonight."
"Pardoning the presidents kids? Why President Trump and his top allies believe Ivanka, Jared, Don Jr, and Eric, could need what’s being called a preemptive pardon," Norah O'Donnell of "CBS Evening News" said to viewers.
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NBC News ran the headline "President Trump has discussed possibility of pardons for family members, sources say," telling readers "One source said the conversations in recent days were within the context of a president who feels embattled, and not because Trump believes he or any of his family members had done anything illegal."
The Peacock network published a follow-up report asking "Could Trump pardon family members if they haven't been charged with crimes?" to which it answered "undoubtedly yes."
Washington Post columnist Philip Bump posed a similar question and answer, "How much protection can Trump offer his family with his pardon power? A lot."
"There’s not much risk to Trump in attempting to grant such a blanket pardon. He might issue a sweepingly broad pardon — say, giving Jared Kushner a pass on any federal crimes committed from the moment of his birth until the moment the pardon was issued — with the understanding that, should someone seek to prosecute Kushner, they would have to persuade a court to let them do so," Bump wrote. "They might be able to do that, particularly if the pardon is as vague as the one just mentioned. But, from Trump’s perspective, what’s the harm in trying? Particularly since there’s no accountability mechanism in place to prevent Trump from doing so."
NPR also delved into Trump's legal powers with the story titled "Talk Of 'Preemptive' Pardons By Trump Raises Questions: What Can He Do?" featuring an image of Don Jr. at the top.
Vanity Fair was far more presumptive, running the headline "Of Course Trump Is Going To Pardon Jared, Ivanka, and Maybe Even Don Jr."
The liberal news blog Slate even speculated that Trump pardoning his children could "make him a bigger criminal target," writing "If Trump were to distribute such broadly worded pardons liberally among his circle, he would make them all subject to subpoena to testify about not only their own conduct, but his."
Biden sparked backlash from both sides of the aisle for his sweeping pardon of Hunter after repeatedly saying he wouldn't.
The pardon he ordered Sunday night covers crimes his son "has committed or may have committed" from Jan. 1, 2014 to Dec. 1, 2024.
"Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter," Biden wrote in a statement. "From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted."
Biden also referenced his son's battle with addiction and blamed "raw politics" for the unraveling of Hunter's plea deal.
"There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution," the 82-year-old father wrote. "In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough."
Fox News' Emma Colton and Andrea Margolis contributed to this report.
