Is Joe Biden really going to stay in the race for president? Many have been asking this question—justifiably so. He's not polling well against Donald Trump or any of his rivals for the Republican nomination, his approval ratings are terrible, and concerns about his age and cognitive health... well... let's just say there isn't much good news for the Biden campaign less than a year out from the election. This stands in stark contrast to polling from four years ago, which showed Biden with a healthy lead throughout the campaign. Trump's lead in the polls may be small, but he's consistently outperformed the polls, which makes his current lead in the polls an ominous sign for the Democratic Party.
Frankly, it’s also debatable whether Joe Biden even wants to run for president. He recently admitted to donors that if Trump wasn’t running again, he probably wouldn’t be seeking a second term. Perhaps he really believes that he’s the only Democrat who can beat Trump, or perhaps he’s hoping that he can win in 2024 and pardon his son Hunter without any political consequences.
Hunter, as we all know, appears to actually be in some significant legal trouble now. He was recently indicted on nine new federal charges. This comes weeks after his sweetheart plea deal fell apart—a dramatic turn of events that has his legal team scrambling to figure out a way to save him and Joe Biden in the process.
With Hunter Biden's legal troubles becoming an even bigger problem, Albert Hunt of The Messenger argues that Biden could save his son from potential prison time by dropping out of the race for president.
"President Biden has the perfect reason to bow out of the presidential race: to come to the aid of his troubled son, Hunter, who was just indicted for tax evasion," Hunt begins.
"There would be three immediate reactions," Hunt continued, "a sigh of relief from many Democratic officeholders, who are scared not only that Biden may lose but also that he might take them down with him; a dozen or so would likely tip their toes — maybe both feet — into the nomination fight, and the graceless House Republicans would likely high-five one another for their victory of driving Biden out, neglecting to realize this takes the punch out of their investigative witch-hunts."
Hunt argues that Biden is in "perilous shape politically" and that there's little reason to believe he can turn things around before Election Day. By dropping out, the Democratic field will be flooded with candidates eager to take on Trump. Republicans have been building a campaign around Biden as their general election opponent, and the potential for someone else would change the dynamic of the race substantially--and probably not in the Republicans' favor. But dropping out is no guarantee that Hunter's legal problems will go away. The target on Trump's back didn't go away when he left the White House, did it?
"I don't know if the case [against Hunter] is strong or whether the prosecutor felt pressure to bring it; I suspect if his father wasn't running for president, we never would have heard of it," Hunt argues. "What is evident is that Hunter is a deeply troubled man, deep in debt and probably in need of strong support. His father can provide that."
Does Hunt really believe that Joe Biden would drop out to be a source of moral support for his son Hunter? There are a lot of reasons why one might give up the presidency, but Biden isn't dropping out to be a supportive father for a grown man with children. As troubled as Hunter Biden may be, he's responsible for his own actions, and the only real power Joe has is to give him a clean legal slate to start his life over. Pardoning Hunter Biden would be controversial, perhaps on the same level as Ford's pardon of Nixon. But whether he wins or loses, he can pardon Hunter after the 2024 election, serve briefly into a second term to keep up appearances, and resign. The political fallout of pardoning his son would disappear upon his departure from the government.
So no, I don't think Joe Biden will fall on his sword to save his son.
