President Biden pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, after the first son was convicted in two separate federal cases earlier this year.

The announcement was made by the White House on Sunday night.

"Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter," Biden wrote in a statement. "From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted."

"Without aggravating factors like use in a crime, multiple purchases, or buying a weapon as a straw purchaser, people are almost never brought to trial on felony charges solely for how they filled out a gun form," the statement added. "Those who were late paying their taxes because of serious addictions, but paid them back subsequently with interest and penalties, are typically given non-criminal resolutions. It is clear that Hunter was treated differently."

BIDEN WON'T PARDON HUNTER, WHITE HOUSE REAFFIRMS, BUT CRITICS AREN'T SO SURE

Hunter Biden, 54, has had a busy year in court, kicking off his first trial in Delaware in June, when he faced three felony firearm offenses, before he pleaded guilty in a separate felony tax case in September. 

President Biden pardoning his son is a departure from his previous remarks to the media over the summer, declaring he would not pardon the first son. 

"Yes," President Biden told ABC News when asked if he would rule out pardoning Hunter ahead of his guilty verdict in the gun case. 

Days later, following a jury of Hunter’s peers finding him guilty of three felony firearm offenses, the president again said he would not pardon his son. 

"I am not going to do anything," Biden said after Hunter was convicted. "I will abide by the jury’s decision."

In the gun case, Hunter was found guilty of making a false statement in the purchase of a gun, making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a federally licensed gun dealer, and possession of a gun by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.

HUNTER BIDEN FOUND GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS IN GUN TRIAL

Prosecutors specifically worked to prove that Biden lied on a federal firearm form, known as ATF Form 4473, in October 2018, when he ticked a box labeled "No" when asked if he is an unlawful user of substances or addicted to controlled substances. 

Hunter has a well-documented history of drug abuse, which was most notably documented in his 2021 memoir, "Beautiful Things," which walked readers through his previous need to smoke crack cocaine every 20 minutes, how his addiction was so prolific that he referred to himself as a "crack daddy" to drug dealers, and anecdotes revolving around drug deals, such as a Washington, D.C., crack dealer Biden nicknamed "Bicycles."

HUNTER BIDEN TRIAL ENTERS DAY 5 AFTER TESTIMONY FROM SISTER-IN-LAW-TURNED-GIRLFRIEND: 'PANICKED'

Hunter’s attorneys did not dispute the first son’s long history with substance abuse amid the trial, which also included an addiction to alcohol. The defense instead argued that on the day Biden bought the Cobra Colt .38, he did not consider himself an active drug addict, citing the first son's stint in rehab ahead of the October 2018 purchase.

Prosecutors, however, argued Biden was addicted to crack cocaine before, during and after he bought the handgun. Just one day after the gun purchase, prosecutors showed the court that Biden texted Hallie Biden, his sister-in-law-turned-girlfriend, to say he was "waiting for a dealer named Mookie." A day after that text, he texted that he was "sleeping on a car smoking crack on 4th Street and Rodney" in Wilmington. 

A jury deliberated for roughly three hours across two days before they found Hunter guilty on each charge. 

Hunter was scheduled for sentencing on Nov. 13, which was delayed until December before his dad intervened. 

After President Biden dropped out of the presidential race in July amid mounting concerns over his mental acuity and age, Hunter faced another trial regarding three felony tax offenses and six misdemeanor tax offenses regarding the failure to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes. 

As jury selection was about to kick off in Los Angeles federal court, Hunter entered a surprise guilty plea. 

HUNTER BIDEN PLEADS GUILTY TO ALL NINE FEDERAL TAX CHARGES BROUGHT BY SPECIAL COUNSEL DAVID WEISS

"I will not subject my family to more pain, more invasions of privacy and needless embarrassment," Hunter said in an emailed statement at the time. "For all I have put them through over the years, I can spare them this, and so I have decided to plead guilty."

The charges carried up to 17 years behind bars, but the first son would likely have faced a much shorter sentence under federal sentencing guidelines. His sentencing was scheduled for Dec. 16. 

Ahead of the president’s decision to pardon his son, President-elect Donald Trump said on the campaign trail that he would consider pardoning Hunter if victorious on Nov. 5. 

"I wouldn't take it off the books," Trump told radio host Hugh Hewitt in October. "See, unlike Joe Biden, despite what they've done to me, where they've gone after me so viciously. . . . And Hunter's a bad boy."

"There's no question about it. He's been a bad boy," Trump continued. "But I happen to think it's very bad for our country."

Roughly half the country is represented by Democratic attorneys general, and a significant number seem ready to confront President-elect Donald Trump, just as many did during his first term.

Twenty-three states plus the District of Columbia and Northern Marianas Islands have Democrats as their top law enforcement officers, and many have positioned themselves as a line of defense against a Trump administration.

The most prolific state-government-litigant last term was Washington Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson, who as attorney general filed or was party to suits against the Trump administration 99 times. He lost three times.

He litigated the Muslim "travel ban," and has expressed concern about Trump-era changes to abortion, immigration and LGBTQ policy.

NJ GOV SAYS HE'LL ‘FIGHT TO THE DEATH' AGAINST CERTAIN TRUMP ACTIONS

Fox News Digital reached out to Ferguson, but he told the Washington Standard the state has been working "for many months … to prepare for this."

Ferguson’s team reportedly read the Heritage Foundation’s entire 900-page Project 2025 publication and prepared successor Attorney General-elect Nick Brown to continue his work.

"Obviously, Trump’s [first] administration turned out to be a train wreck for our country and his efforts to trample on the rights of Americans and Washingtonians on our environment, reproductive freedom; the list goes on," Ferguson told Democracy Docket in October.

Brown told Fox News Digital he pledged to "enforce and defend our laws, stand up for our values and protect our communities: And I intend to fully honor that commitment."

"I have no interest in needlessly creating or seeking out conflict with the incoming Trump administration," Brown said.

"But if they take actions that violate our laws or harm our people, I am ready and willing to use all available legal options to protect the residents of Washington State from such unwanted intrusions."

NEWSOM TO ‘TRUMP-PROOF' CALIFORNIA

Ferguson said a lot of Trump’s actions may be legal and "no one will be more happy than me" if Olympia never goes to court again.

In New Jersey, then-Attorney General Gurbir Grewal participated in dozens of suits against the first Trump administration, and Gov. Phil Murphy said while he hopes to find common ground with Trump, he will "fight to the death" to defend Jersey values.

Current New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin told Fox News Digital the election was fair and that Trenton will respect the democratic process that put Trump in the White House.

"As the president, he has the right to implement the policy agenda that he sees fit for the country. What he does not have the right to do is to violate the laws of this nation [or] this state…" Platkin said, citing a focus on gun safety, health care, the environment and immigration issues.

"I do not wake up every day dying to sue the president of the United States, but I also will not hesitate to do so when it’s in the best interests of our residents."

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has been preparing for another Trump administration as his office also reportedly observes the behavior of Trump’s circle.

"President Trump has made no secret of his agenda for his second term. We’re taking him at his word when he tells us what he plans to do: whether that be rolling back environmental protections, threatening immigrant and civil rights, or restricting access to essential reproductive care," Bonta said.

"Fortunately, and unfortunately, we have four years of ‘Trump-1.0’ under our belts. We know what to expect, and we won’t be caught flat-footed: What happens next is up to the president-elect. If he doesn’t violate the law, and we hope he won’t, we won’t need to take action.

"But based on our experience with the first Trump administration and the president-elect’s own words, we expect that won’t be the case…"

In Delaware, Attorney General Kathy Jennings made opposing Trump key to her 2018 campaign.

"Donald Trump threatens our civil rights. He undermines the rule of law," Jennings said in an ad. "As attorney general, I'll stand up to Donald Trump when his agenda hurts Delaware."

Fox News Digital reached out to Jennings, who previously challenged Trump’s child migrant detention system.

Wisconsin was party to several lawsuits in Trump’s first term, and Attorney General Josh Kaul signaled he's "prepared to defend the rights of Wisconsinites if necessary." 

"Let me say if the new administration infringes upon the freedoms of Wisconsinites or attempts to use our system of justice as a tool for vengeance, we will act," he said recently.

In Connecticut, Attorney General William Tong is coordinating with other attorneys general.

"I’m sad to say we are here again. But we went through this the first time with the Muslim ban and the border wall, and we are even more ready now," he said, according to WSHU.

"[W]hen they attack the American-born children of immigrants, and they talk about denying birthright citizenship, they are talking about me," said Tong.

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Then-Hawaii Attorney General Douglas Chin succeeded in blocking Trump’s "travel ban," crediting the Aloha State as the first to launch litigation. Fox News Digital reached out to successor Anne Lopez regarding her stance toward Trump.

Fox also sought comment from the most high-profile of attorney-general-litigants. New York's Letitia James pledged to be a "real pain in the a--" and led a $450 million fraud case against Trump.

She did not respond, but recently said she’s ready to "fight back again."

The Trump transition team did not respond to a request for comment, but the president-elect did recently say of James, "she’s got serious Trump Derangement Syndrome."

Delaware set off a firestorm this month after it elected the first transgender woman to Congress, leading some Republicans to demand the new lawmaker be barred from women’s bathrooms.

Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, currently a Democrat state senator for President Biden’s hometown of Claymont, Delaware, defeated retired Delaware State Trooper John Whalen III, 58%-42%. McBride succeeds Rep. Lisa Blunt-Rochester, D-Del., who won the retiring Tom Carper’s open U.S. Senate seat.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., led the charge against allowing McBride from using the women’s restrooms on Capitol Hill. McBride is a biological male who identifies and presents as a woman. Mace said Tuesday she is now receiving death threats, adding that she is the one being "unfairly targeted."

Mace drafted resolution H.R. 1579 on Monday which would prohibit members, officers and employees of the House from using facilities other than those corresponding to their biological sex.

MACE FACES BACKLASH OVER EFFORT TO BAN TRANSGENDER MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM WOMEN'S BATHROOMS

As of Tuesday afternoon, it had been referred to the House Administration Committee currently chaired by Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., but did not appear to have come to a vote yet.

The bill would direct House Sergeant-at-Arms William McFarland to enforce the new provision.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., told reporters she supports Mace’s resolution and called McBride "mentally ill."

"Sarah McBride, as he calls himself, formerly Tim McBride, is a biological man, and he should not be using any of our restrooms in the Capitol and those in our office buildings," Greene said.

"Nancy Mace's resolution doesn't go far enough. Her resolution is just a statement by Congress saying that Congress disagrees with something. We need something more binding."

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R–La., a noted social conservative, said he’s "not going to get into this."

"We welcome all new members with open arms who are duly elected representatives of the people. I believe it's a command that we treat all persons with dignity and respect, that we will. And I'm not going to engage in silly debates about this."

Johnson added that the issue of gender identity in locker rooms and bathrooms is not something Congress has had to address before and thus deserves honest deliberation and "member consensus."

"And we will accommodate the needs of every single person," the speaker added.

Greene said the situation reminds her of how student-athletes were forced to compete against biological males who are physiologically stronger as a baseline.

"There is a volleyball player that has brain damage today because of a biological male spiking a ball into her head."

In that regard, former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines, who was forced to compete against a transgender University of Pennsylvania swimmer, slammed McBride’s pointed response to criticisms.

"And even after his temper tantrum, he's still a man," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Gaines is an OutKick.com contributor and the host of the "Gaines for Girls" podcast.

In a 2015 story in American’s college magazine, McBride said, "My father said to me that he was not losing a son but gaining a daughter. That was one of the most profound moments in my transition. It was a major relief when it was clear that both my parents saw me as who I am."

In earlier comments about her resolution, Mace said she is a rape survivor and still has PTSD from her abuse at the hands of a man.

Later Tuesday, Mace said the issue is protecting women and girls and making sure Congress acts in accordance.

"[McBride] doesn't get a say. This is about real women and women's rights and the far-left radical left. They want to erase women and women's rights, and I'm not going to let them," she said. 

"Here's the deal: Biological men shouldn't be in women's private spaces, period, end of story," she said.

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., defended McBride on Tuesday, telling reporters he was "sick to his stomach" by Mace’s resolution.

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In a statement, McBride called the situation "a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact that they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing."

"Delawareans sent me here to make the American dream more affordable and accessible and that’s what I’m focused on."

Fox News Digital reached out to McBride's campaign and Dover office for additional comment on the new criticisms and was provided with an initial statement.

Fox News’ Daniel Scully, Tyler Olson and Ryan Schmelz contributed to this report.