Biden’s pardon of Hunter defended by White House as Trump taps in-laws amid presidential transition: Live

President-elect Donald Trump has chosen his youngest daughter’s father-in-law to be his senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs.

Massad Boulus is the father of Michael Boulos, who married Tiffany Trump in November 2022 at Mar-a-Lago after they got engaged at the White House during Trump’s first term.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

“He believes in the Justice Department,” Jean-Pierre tells reporters after the president criticized the department for “selective prosecution” of his son.

“Two things can be true,” she added. “The President does believe in the justice system and the Department of Justice. And he also believes that his son was singled out politically.”

Asked if President Biden would have pardoned his son if Kamala Harris had won the election, Jean Pierre replied: “I’m not going to get into the election.”

“I can’t speak to hypotheticals,” she added.

More pardons can be expected before the end of Biden’s term.

President Joe Biden “wrestled” with the decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.

“He wrestled with it. It was not an easy decision to make,” she said.

Jean-Pierre declined to say whether the president discussed the decision with his son while they were together on Nantucket over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Asked if the president’s previous pledges not to pardon Hunter could now be now seen as lies, she responded: “First of all, one of the things that the President always believes is to be truthful to the American people.”

Jean-Pierre urged people to read Biden's statement regarding the decision.

The president is currently on his way to Angola.

Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump’s controversial nominee for director of national intelligence, will meet with Republican members of the Senate Intelligence Committee this week.

Here’s what you need to know about Gabbard, and why her nomination is so controversial:

Far-right provocateur and pardoned felon Dinesh D’Souza has issued an apology over false accusations he made in his 2022 election conspiracy theory movie 2000 Mules, acknowledging that his claims about illegal “ballot trafficking” during the 2020 presidential election were misleading and inaccurate.

In a lengthy statement posted to his website on Sunday, D’Souza said that his movie — which asserts that “mules” were paid to fraudulently deposit harvested ballots in swing states — had relied on “cell phone geolocation data” provided by conservative non-profit group True the Vote. That data, D’Souza noted, had turned out to be false.

Justin Barangoa has the details.

The White House released the following statement from President Joe Biden after it was confirmed that Omer Neutra, an American citizen missing since the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, was killed that day.

Our hearts are heavy today. Jill and I are devastated and outraged to learn of the death of Omer Neutra, an American citizen, whose body Hamas has apparently been holding since they killed him during their brutal terrorist attack October 7.

Omer was just 21 years old when he was taken by Hamas. He was serving as a tank commander in an Israel Defense Forces unit that was among the first to respond to Hamas’s campaign of cruelty— risking his life to save the lives of others. A Long Island native, Omer planned to return to the United States for college. He dreamed of dedicating himself to building peace.

Less than a month ago, Omer’s mother and father joined me at the White House to share the pain they’ve endured as they prayed for the safe return of their son – pain no parent should ever know. They told me how Omer’s grandparents were Holocaust survivors and how their family’s strength and resilience has been carried through the generations.

During this dark hour—as our nation joins Omer’s parents, brother, and family in grieving this tragic loss—we pray to find strength and resilience. And to all the families of those still held hostage: We see you. We are with you. And I will not stop working to bring your loved ones back home where they belong.

Democratic Congressman Greg Landsman, who represents Ohio’s 1st District, says the pardoning of Hunter Biden by President Joe Biden is a “setback” for those who want people to believe in public service.

He wrote on X: “As a father, I get it. But as someone who wants people to believe in public service again, it’s a setback.”

California Rep. Eric Swalwell has told supporters of Donald Trump that they “can sit out” any discussion of the Hunter Biden pardon.

The Democrat posted on X: “If you defended the 34x felon, who committed sexual assault, stole national security documents, and tried running a coup on his country…you can sit out the Hunter Biden pardon discussion.”

Donald Trump’s second pick to be his attorney general Pam Bondi will visit the Senate today to court confirmation votes.

Here’s what you need to know about Bondi: