So President Joe (Never going to pardon Hunter; not going to happen) Biden has issued a 10-year Presidential Pardon for his son Hunter for any federal crimes he may or may not have committed. Color me 'unsurprised'.
But as they say: every silver lining has a cloud. Hunter can no longer 'plead the 5th' because he cannot self-incriminate. That threat has just been erased — permanently.
So now, when he's subpoenaed by a House subcommittee and asked "How much money went to your father? How much to your uncle Jim?" he must answer — and truthfully, lest he commit perjury for which he has not been pardoned.
May he live in interesting times.
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I've always found it interesting that the courts uphold your interpretation of the 5th Amendment, which says no such thing.
ReplyDelete"No person ... shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself...". So, technically, while someone might object to answering some question to avoid embarrassment, having been pardoned is tantamount to a public admission of criminality. That is: the embarrassment has already happened; the person has already been a witness against himself. That cat is out of the bag, and the courts, recognizing that, have held that 'further embarrassment' is insufficient grounds to thwart the course of justice. I guess.
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