Outgoing Democratic U.S. Senator Jon Tester of Montana has reportedly refused to weigh in on President Joe Biden's controversial pardon of his son Hunter Biden.
The president announced Sunday night that he signed a "Full and Unconditional Pardon" for any crimes that Hunter Biden may have committed from January 1, 2014, to December 1, 2024. The president, who previously said that he would not issue the pardon, argued that the move was necessary because his son was "being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted" on federal gun and tax fraud charges.
"No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter's cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son – and that is wrong," Biden said in a statement. "In trying to break Hunter, they've tried to break me – and there's no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough."
Tester, who lost to Republican Senator-elect Tim Sheehy last month, was not among a small group of Democrats who blasted Biden for the pardon, telling reporters in Washington on Monday to "ask somebody else" about the matter while suggesting that his opinion was irrelevant since he would no longer be in office next month.
"Sen. Jon Tester, living his best life, does not care to answer questions about Joe Biden pardoning his son: 'I'm about to get the f*** out of here. Ask somebody else,' he tells reporters with a wide smile," NBC News senior national political reporter Sahil Kapur wrote in a post to X, formerly Twitter.
CNN's chief congressional correspondent Manu Raju reported similar remarks from Tester, writing on X that he asked the outgoing senator about the Biden pardon and was told to "ask somebody who counts" because he is "one month from getting the f*** out of here."
Newsweek reached out for comment to Tester's office via email on Monday night.
While most Democratic senators have joined Tester in remaining silent on the Biden pardon, a few have criticized the president for using his power to settle his son's legal issues.
"President Biden's decision to pardon his son was wrong," Senator Gary Peters of Michigan wrote in an X post on Monday. "A president's family and allies shouldn't get special treatment. This was an improper use of power, it erodes trust in our government, and it emboldens others to bend justice to suit their interests."
"President Biden's decision put personal interest ahead of duty and further erodes Americans' faith that the justice system is fair and equal for all," wrote Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado.
Jared Polis, Democratic governor of Colorado, also reacted to the pardon negatively, writing on X that it was "a bad precedent that could be abused by later presidents and will sadly tarnish [Biden's] reputation."
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