Former Obama aide Jon Favreau on his show Tuesday called President Joe Biden “a tragic figure,” stating that the president’s ego has consistently gotten “in the way” throughout his term.
Following Biden’s announcement that he would pardon his son — despite both him and his staff previously denying he would take such action — Democrats have been divided in their opinions on the move. On “Pod Save America,” Favreau and his cohosts Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor discussed their views on Hunter Biden’s pardon, with Vietor noting that the time for Biden to protect his son from the “political glare” of Republicans was in 2019, when the president decided to run for office.
“I mean, I’m sorry to say that I think that Joe Biden is a tragic figure, like, and I think that there are many good parts of [him]. I mean, [Lovett] you talked about this back in the whole post debate, is he going to drop out thing, the two Joe Biden’s kind of thing,” Favreau said. “But I do think like he has shown incredible decency at times.”
WATCH:
“I really feel for what he’s gone through and what his family has gone through. They’ve gone through hell. None of us can imagine what they’ve gone through,” Favreau added. “But his ego again and again has gotten in the way. When push comes to shove, it’s like, well, ‘I’m going to do what’s good. I’m going to run for president again, even though it’s fucking crazy to do that. And I shouldn’t do it and blah, blah, blah. I’m just going to do it,’ you know, and now we’re all here. This to me is like in that category.”
While some have come to Biden’s defense over his decision to pardon Hunter, other Democrats, such as Colorado Gov. Jared Polis and Arizona Rep. Greg Stanton, have criticized the move as a misstep. Earlier this year, Biden was also criticized by fellow Democrats for his delayed decision to withdraw from his reelection bid, with Democratic California Rep. Nancy Pelosi later suggesting that, had he ended his campaign earlier, the party could have held a primary to select a stronger candidate.
Featured Image Credit: The White House
