When the American Founding FathersThe men generally thought to have played the most important role in creating the United States of America, by leading its military forces during the War of Independence or by writing the documents on which it is founded and still guide the country today. were writing a constitution for their new nation in 1787, they planned to give their new office of President of the United States roughly the same powers as the British constitutional monarchA hereditary head of state whose power is limited by a constitution and who primarily serves as a ceremonial figurehead. whom they had just rejected.

These included the power to vetoAn official way of blocking or forbidding something. bills passed by the legislatureAn organised group of representatives with the power to make laws. By contrast, in Britain "the Government" usually refers only to the Prime Minister and other ministers whose job as the "executive" is to decide how to implement laws in practice., to appoint and dismiss ministers - and to pardon criminals, a power known as the royal prerogative of mercy.¹

What they could not foresee was that more than two centuries later, this apparently innocuousHarmless. power would be threatening the foundations of US democracy.

On Sunday, outgoing president Joe Biden pardoned his own son, Hunter, who was convicted earlier this year for writing false information on a gun purchase form and, separately, on several charges relating to tax irregularities.²

The Bidens have long maintained that these charges were politically motivated, brought against Hunter to put pressure on his father and detract from the legal travails of Donald Trump.³

But that has not prevented a wave of criticism, even from his supporters.

This is not the first time a presidential pardon has caused controversy. Biden's democratic predecessor Bill ClintonThe American president from 1993 to 2001. He is a Democrat. pardoned Marc Rich, a fugitive from justice whose former wife had donated heavily to the Clinton campaign.

But Biden stands accused of more than grubbiness. Critics say his decision to pardon his own son opens the door to wider abuses of power by the incoming second Trump administration.

Trump has already said that he will pardon those who participated in the riots of 6 January 2021, which were aimed at overturning the election result.⁴

Many of those rioters have been locked up in the same prison wing. Experts say they have been radicalising each other.⁵ If they are released they will return to US society feeling vindicated in their belief that they were convicted for political reasons, and determined to get revenge on Democrats.

Now it will be much harder for the Democrats to condemn that decision. Likewise if Trump abuses his power to pardon members of his family, political cronies, or even himself. Hunter Biden's pardon risks normalising the kind of self-interested politics that Trump thrives on.

That is why Biden long insisted he would not pardon his son. Yet most agree breaking that promise is understandable.

Hunter is Biden's only surviving son, since the death of his brother, Beau, in 2015. An army veteran and rising political star, Beau was seen as the bearer of the family legacy.

Hunter's life has been more complicated. After an early career in politics and lobbying, he descended into a haze of alcoholismAlcohol addiction. and drug abuse. Biden wants to spare his son more pain.

Joe Biden is devoted to his family. He is always surrounded by them, whether in the White House or in his home in Delaware. They are the foundation of his political strength.

Yet he has also dedicated his life to the US political system, underpinned by the essential principle that the president's powers must be firmly limited and wielded only for the public good.

So the choice before him was devastating. Should he betray the country that he has served for more than five decades to avoid seeing his already-broken son put behind bars for the rest of his own life?

In his shoes, wouldn't you?

Yes: Biden has always believed family comes first. And Hunter Biden's life has been one of tragedy. How could he look himself in the eye if he did not save his son from still more misery?

No: Biden has sold 335 million people down the river for the sake of a man who has already thrown away his life. History will judge the sentimental weakness of a president who failed in his life's mission.

Or... Although he would hate the comparison, Biden has never been so very different from Trump: a rough-hewn, entitled man who struggles to separate personal from public life. He was always destined to bury, not save, American democracy.