Hunter Biden's pardon by Joe Biden wasn't a shock. Everyone knew it was coming, despite Biden's repeated promises that he wouldn't. Despite it being telegraphed more obviously than a boxer in super slow motion, the impact of it has been explosive.
If you've been following the drama on RedState, you'll notice that there have been a mix of reactions on both the left and the right. I won't get into the "right" defending Biden's actions. The Bulwark's ridiculous thumbs up is its own article that I may or may not get into, depending on how badly I want to have a headache.
This is why the swamp exists. “Republicans” willing to stand by and let Democrats commit crimes because they didn’t like the form the swamp’s destroyer took. pic.twitter.com/vSDEn4EO9M
— Brandon Morse (@TheBrandonMorse) December 2, 2024
For now, I want to focus on the reaction from the left.
To be immediately fair, there are Democrats who reacted to Biden's pardon exactly as they should have, and some of these comments come from surprising places, such as Colorado Governor Jared Polis, Colorado Senator Michael Bennet, and Arizona Rep. Greg Stanton, whose reactions were covered by my friend and colleague Ward Clark.
(UPDATED: Democrats Piling on to Condemn Hunter Biden Pardon)
But there were those on the left that seem willing to either turn a blind eye or even defend Biden. As Mike Miller covered on Monday, the bootlickers over at "Morning Joe" spent a whole 52 minutes not talking about the pardon at all, and just going over some of Trump's cabinet members. It's pretty clear that the pardon was the bigger story, yet if you were watching the Scarboroughs, you'd have thought nothing happened at all.
You'd be surprised at how much people say by what they aren't saying at all. It's the definition of "deafening silence," and while I've never been one to say that silence is approval, the "Morning Joe" crew had always been willing to support Biden and Democrat efforts of any kind to the point of radicalism. The fact that they didn't comment on it, however, shows that they have no way to defend it, though they'd undoubtedly like to.
But there are those that were put on the spot that threw away any integrity they had in order to give their approval, and that could be seen with the confrontation Scott Jennings had with his fellow CNN panelists. As Bonchie covered on Monday, there was a particular moment where the radicals threw all caution to the wind and gave their full-throated endorsement of Biden's actions:
ANALYST: But Scott, you don't need to hurl names and say people like me are "brain-rotted." Come on, that's a little beyond the pale, even for you, Scott.
(Crosstalk)
JENNINGS: You don't have to defend this, you don't have to defend it, you don't have to die on this hill. You can say, "This is wrong."
ANALYST: I'm fine with this. That's why I'm defending it.
JENNINGS: Are you fine with the lying?
ANALYST: I say, "Good for Joe Biden."
JENNINGS: Are you fine with him sitting before the election all year and lying to the American people? Are you fine with him lying about it?
ANALYST: I don't think that he was lying...
JENNINGS: (Shocked expression)
ANALYST: ...I think he made a decision after the fact and decided this was the right thing for him and his family. Period. Full Stop.
Let's be clear. I think Democrats and Republicans are perfectly capable of coming together to make rational decisions. The election of Donald Trump proved that, as Trump did have quite a bit of support from Democrats who turned their back on their own part for the betterment of the nation. Trump's election was, in my opinion, a clear indicator that partisanship doesn't necessarily rule America when our country is on the line.
But there is a deeper problem that I wouldn't describe as merely political, it's cultural. A culture or radical tribalism to be precise. As conservatives, Democrats are our opponents, yes, but an opponent doesn't necessarily mean "an enemy." Outside the noise of the internet, I'm friends with plenty of people who identify as Democrats, and they're lovely people.
However, there is a loyalty to ideology that, frankly, makes enemies of us all. These people will support any action, no matter how radical, if it promotes, benefits, or advances their ideological agenda in any way. They will push this radicalization as far as they can take it, even if it means undermining trust in our institutions. They have no interesting accountability, and turn politics in a zero-sum game where compromise and fairness are seen as weakness.
If we're truly going to win this fight, both sides have to work to destroy this kind of cultural mentality. We will always argue between the parties as to which direction or decision is best, that's politics, but this radicalism is something else entirely. Not politics, but a sickness. A mind virus.
I don't expect these people to just wake up and stop being who they are, but I do expect moderates to recognize the wolves among the sheep. If they don't, then we're all going to have a much harder time going forward.
