{"id":31687,"date":"2025-01-27T11:38:19","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T11:38:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/27\/bidens-controversial-pardons-shine-new-light-on-power-as-pa-lawmakers-take-next-step-to-strip-joes-name\/"},"modified":"2025-01-27T11:38:19","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T11:38:19","slug":"bidens-controversial-pardons-shine-new-light-on-power-as-pa-lawmakers-take-next-step-to-strip-joes-name","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/27\/bidens-controversial-pardons-shine-new-light-on-power-as-pa-lawmakers-take-next-step-to-strip-joes-name\/","title":{"rendered":"Biden\u2019s controversial pardons shine new light on power, as PA lawmakers take next step to strip Joe\u2019s name"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lawmakers at the state and federal levels are responding to President Joe Biden\u2019s record presidential pardon spree<\/a> \u2013 as more than 3,000 people found their sentences commuted or pardoned. The pardons, some of which came in the final hours of Biden’s presidency, were issued to many members of his own family.<\/p>\n

The last-minute tranche on Sunday that included James Biden, Hunter Biden<\/a> and Valerie Biden-Owens came only weeks after a record 1,500 commutations in a single day \u2013 notably including that of disgraced Pennsylvania Judge Michael Conahan.<\/p>\n

Conahan, of Wilkes-Barre, was dubbed the “kids for cash judge” after he was charged in connection with a scheme to send juvenile offenders to for-profit prisons in exchange for kickbacks.<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania state Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Dallas, represents the area where Conahan once sat on the bench.<\/p>\n

LAWMAKERS DEMAND SCRANTON CHANGE \u2018BIDEN EXPRESSWAY\u2019 NAME AFTER JUDGE PARDONED<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Baker told Fox News Digital the former president\u2019s pardon in that case was “disrespectful to the victims, their families, the juvenile justice system, and to all the officials who have worked to reform the system so that this kind of scandal cannot happen again.”<\/p>\n

She and other lawmakers are also trying to bring new attention to victim notification processes that exist at the federal level and in many states, including Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n

A source familiar with the federal process said the system is a voluntary construct, in that victims may sign up for notifications but are not automatically informed if convicts are pardoned, transferred or released.<\/p>\n

Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., said he was troubled by much of Biden\u2019s pardon spree, including those given preemptively to family and President Donald Trump<\/a> critics, as well as convicts like Conahan \u2013 whose “kids for cash” scandal greatly affected his constituents \u2013 and added that the former president may have damaged the pardon process.<\/p>\n

“These preemptive actions amount to an implicit admission of wrongdoing,” Meuser said of pardons given to Biden family members.<\/a><\/p>\n

ECONOMY BORDER & ABORTION DIVIDE BIDEN’S HOMETOWN AS RESIDENTS LOOK BACK ON NATIVE SON’S FIRST TERM<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“This sets a dangerous precedent that undermines the long-standing purpose of the presidential pardon power. Historically, pardons have been used to offer clemency or correct injustices\u2014not to shield one’s family members from potential accountability before any charges are even brought.”<\/p>\n

Unfortunately for Biden critics, Meuser said the presidential pardon power is enshrined in Article II of the Constitution, and Congress has no power to intervene or change it.<\/p>\n

“While I vehemently disagree with Biden\u2019s decision to preemptively pardon members of his family, the presidential pardon power is established [therein]. That means, absent the ratification of a constitutional amendment, Congress does not have the power to review, alter, or pass legislation limiting a president\u2019s pardon power.”<\/p>\n

Meuser pointed to the 1974 Supreme Court case Schick v. Reed, which confirmed Congress cannot have a role.<\/p>\n

“Nevertheless, our Founding Fathers never could have conceived that a president would pardon a son who broke countless laws and utilized the White House to defraud and leverage millions of dollars in a pay-to-play scheme that also involved other family members.”<\/p>\n

Rep. Rob Bresnahan, R-Pa., who flipped Biden\u2019s home district in November, has also expressed concern over Biden\u2019s use of presidential pardons.<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“I think what’s discouraging is that you heard time and time again along the campaign trail that he wasn’t going to do something like this, but I’m certainly not surprised,” Bresnahan recently told WBRE.<\/p>\n

“I’m sure much of America is not surprised.”<\/p>\n

While countless Americans who fell victim to those pardoned, including Conahan, may have little recourse, Baker said she is participating in the drafting of legislation in Harrisburg late Friday that will attempt to remove Biden\u2019s likeness from part of his home area.<\/p>\n

While the former Spruce Street in Scranton \u2013 since renamed Biden Avenue \u2013 is city property, Baker said the “President Joseph R. Biden Jr. Expressway” splitting off Interstate 81 into his hometown is within PennDOT\u2019s bounds.<\/p>\n

“The reaction has been so strong that many have called for renaming the President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Expressway, which was designated by Scranton City Council in 2021,” Baker said.<\/p>\n

The lawmaker added Biden\u2019s legacy is forever “stained” by Conahan\u2019s “inexplicable and infamous commutation.”<\/p>\n

“We owe it to the juvenile victims, their families, and all the believers in equal justice to remove the name of Joe Biden and replace it with someone truly deserving of the honor.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lawmakers at the state and federal levels are responding to President Joe Biden\u2019s record presidential pardon spree \u2013 as more than 3,000 people found their sentences commuted or pardoned. The pardons, some of which came in the final hours of Biden’s presidency, were issued to many members of his own family. The last-minute tranche on … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31687"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31687\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}