This Democrat got completely ambushed on CNN and they may never recover
The Left is starting to eat their own. They can’t seem to agree on anything.
And now this Democrat got completely ambushed on CNN and they may never recover.
CNN host Brianna Keilar pressed Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., over his earlier defense of President Biden’s claim that he would never pardon his son, Hunter — a promise the president reversed on Sunday.
Biden issued a sweeping pardon for Hunter, despite having repeatedly assured the public he wouldn’t.
The first son had faced convictions in two federal cases earlier this year: pleading guilty to federal tax charges in September and being convicted in June on three felony gun charges after lying on a purchase form about drug use.
In his statement, Biden defended the decision, claiming Hunter was “singled out only because he is my son” and alleging an effort to “break Hunter” in order to “break me.”
During her Monday interview, Keilar reminded Goldman of his past remarks.
“You went out on a limb backing up Biden when he said that there would not be a pardon in July of 2023, just after that plea deal fell through,” she said before airing a clip of Goldman’s comments.
In the 2023 recording, Goldman had confidently dismissed the idea of a pardon:
“I don’t think there’s any chance that President Biden is going to do that, unlike his predecessor, who pardoned all of his friends and anyone who had any access to him. And I think you see that in this case where he kept on—and Merrick Garland kept on—a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney to investigate the president’s son. If there is not an indication of the independence of the Department of Justice beyond that, I don’t know what we could look for.”
Keilar didn’t hold back. “What does that feel like?” she asked Goldman. “Watching yourself back then reassuring people that Biden was not going to issue a pardon for his son.”
Goldman began to defend his position, claiming, “Yeah, and I think that if that plea agreement and that plea deal had gone through, there would be no pardon, that was a satisfactory outcome—”
Keilar quickly interjected, correcting him. “It had already fallen. When you reacted, this was when the deal had fallen through.”
She pressed further, acknowledging concerns about President-elect Donald Trump’s plans, such as the potential nomination of Kash Patel as FBI director, but argued that such concerns didn’t excuse Biden’s broken promise.
“You know, you took him at his word, so what does that feel like, knowing that he’s gone back on it?” she asked pointedly.
Goldman responded by expressing disappointment, shifting blame toward what he called Republican meddling in the case.
“I’m disappointed that after the plea fell through, and it became clear about why it did, including Republican congressional intervention in this case, which made this case very unique and very different from any other case,” he argued.
He doubled down on claims that Hunter was a political target, stating his concern that the president’s son could face “retributive prosecution for political reasons” under Trump’s incoming Justice Department.
While Goldman tried to spin the narrative, Keilar’s grilling highlighted a key reality: Biden’s reversal on his promise has left even his staunchest defenders scrambling for explanations.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
