Alyssa Farah Griffin slammed Biden’s past denials that he’d pardon his son, while Whoopi Goldberg observed: “I can’t believe this is what’s freaking people out.”
After several days off to celebrate unity and togetherness for Thanksgiving, The View cohosts returned to a divided Hot Topics table to discuss President Joe Biden pardoning his son, Hunter Biden, over felony gun and tax convictions.
Moderator Whoopi Goldberg kicked off the show’s first new broadcast since the holiday by stoking a spirited debate after pointing out Donald Trump’s long list of past pardons (including Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, and more), though conservative panelist Alyssa Farah Griffin held firm as the lone detractor criticizing Biden’s decision.
“That’s what presidents do every time. They do it every time, they pardon somebody, so I’m not sure why the pearl-clutching is happening now,” Goldberg said, before Griffin elaborated on her feelings by pointing out that she had an “immediate family member in and out of jail” over addiction issues, who attempted — to this day — to get their record expunged in pursuit of fair employment opportunities.
Teresa Kroeger/Getty; ABC
Hunter Biden and Joe Biden; Alyssa Farah Griffin on ‘The View’
“Most Americans, if they face consequences for actions that they took, they’re going to have to face them, and nobody powerful and politically connected is going to come sweep in and save them,” Griffin observed. “This feeds the notion to a lot of this country that there’s simply a different set of rules for those in power.”
Griffin, who previously worked for Trump’s communications team at the White House, also harshly criticized Biden and his associates for what she felt amounted to “lying” about Biden’s intentions to eventually pardon his son, after both Biden and White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre repeatedly denied that Biden would pardon his only surviving son.
“I felt bad for Karine Jean-Pierre,” Griffin said of Jean-Pierre’s multiple denials that Biden would pardon his son. “This is why people don’t trust Washington, this is why they don’t trust politicians. I know a lot of us like Joe Biden, but I find it disappointing and bad for our institutions.”
Related: The View cohosts navigate on-air seating incident, switch spots over Joy Behar’s faulty chair: ‘It’s your ass’
Sunny Hostin, who previously worked as a prosecutor, said she felt that Biden’s son wouldn’t have prosecuted him if his last name were different, and if he didn’t have ties to his powerful father.
“So many of the people who committed this crime do not get prosecuted. Imagine the guilt Joe Biden has to live with thinking that his son, his only surviving son, is getting prosecuted because he is his son,” Ana Navarro added, before speaking directly to Biden’s son. “Hunter, your dad has given you a great, great gift. The gift of freedom.”
Griffin, still pushing back, said she understood that, as a parent, why Biden would pardon his son, but asked, “Why lie about it for so long?” Goldberg pushed back, urging her cohost not to frame it as lying, with Griffin doubling down that the move would set a dangerous precedent.
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly’s free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
It’s a precedent for all of us to open our eyes because we’ve elevated someone who is in a similar situation who didn’t have a drug problem who knew what he was doing,” Goldberg responded, referencing Trump’s election. “I think Biden had no intentions of pardoning Hunter,” she later continued. “I think the more stuff went down, he said, why am I busting my behind to stay straight and do this when no one else is doing it?”
Again, Griffin stressed that she felt “the presidency should be bigger than his feelings,” while Goldberg pushed back, telling her colleague, “I can’t believe this is what’s freaking people out.”
Announcing his decision to pardon his son over the weekend, Biden released a statement in which he said, “I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice.”
The View airs weekdays at 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. PT on ABC.
