CNN reporters and anchors said Monday that President Biden’s decision forgive his family The final moments of his administration tarnished his reputation and became “a stain on his legacy.”

“Well, it turns out, Anderson, yet another promise was broken. That’s exactly how he ultimately decided to turn to the justice system. This decision will raise so many alarming questions about legal precedence that now this This is really one of President Biden’s last actions as a sitting president,” CNN’s MJ Lee said, noting. Biden told CNN’s Jake Tapper America will not see preemptive pardons from his administration in December 2020, and his approach to the justice system will be completely different than President Trump’s.

The White House announced at Trump’s inauguration that Biden’s pardons apply to James Biden, Sarah Jones Biden, Valerie Biden Owens, John Owens and Francis Biden. The now-former president has argued that his family could be subject to “politically motivated investigations” after he leaves office.

Lee said in a statement earlier that this was another way for the former president to tarnish his legacy.

President Trump calls Biden’s last-minute pardon at signing ceremony ‘unfortunate’

President Joe Biden walks down the steps of Air Force One on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. (Susan Walsh/AP)

Alyssa Farah Griffin, a CNN commentator and co-host of “The View,” said during the discussion that a pardon for his family would be “more confusion”. Last minute pardon for Liz Cheney Gen. Mark Milley and Anthony Fauci.

“It’s just disgraceful,” CNN host John King said. “If you’re going to do it, have the courage to do it in broad daylight and explain it to the American people. Doing so is a stain on his legacy. We can argue, can’t we? “Was it necessary that Donald Trump promised revenge?” Yes, if you are the President of the United States and say that the curse of Donald Trump is that he disrespects democracy and disrespects norms, please have the courage to look Americans in the eyes and explain what you are doing. “

Former Obama aide David Axelrod said the timing of the pardon looked suspicious.

“The fact that Trump has been saying this for a long time doesn’t explain why in the last 10 minutes of your presidency you would issue a press release that just makes the whole thing look tacky,” Axelrod said.

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David Axelrod speaking on CNN on January 20, 2025. (Screenshot/CNN)

In December 2020, CNN anchor Jake Tapper asked Biden if he was concerned about rumors that a newly defeated Trump would hand out a wave of preemptive pardons to some of his closest confidants.

“Well, my concern is what kind of precedent does this set for how the rest of the world views us as a nation of law and justice,” he said at the time.

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“You’re not going to see this approach to pardons in our government,” Biden added. “You’re not going to see this approach to policy in our government through tweets. You know, that’s going to be how we deal with it. A completely different approach to the justice system.”

Fox News’ Nicholas Lanum and Anders Hagström contributed to this report.