Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail from the NBC News Politics team.
In today’s edition, our reporters look at President Joe Biden’s pardoning of his son, and specifically the part that ranks fellow Democrats. Plus, senior politics editor Mark Murray looks at the three big polling trends that will define 2024.
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Some Democrats are adamant about justifying Biden’s pardon
Carol E. Lee, Sarah Fitzpatrick, Gary Grumbach, and Dareh Gregorian
It’s not just President Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter. How he did it upsets some fellow Democrats.
President Hunter Biden will be granted a “full and unconditional pardon” for any crime he “committed or was involved in between January 1, 2014 and December 1, 2024,” the White House said in a statement released Sunday evening. gave .
The pardon comes after Biden repeatedly said he would not use his executive powers to pardon or commute his son’s sentence. And in his statement, Biden said his son was pardoned because he was “selectively and unfairly prosecuted.”
As Democratic Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona told NBC News’ “Meet the Press Now” on Monday, it goes against the Democratic Party’s core policy position for years — and the way President-elect Donald Trump and his allies have portrayed his investigations. accusations.
“I’m very angry because it’s going to be incredibly important for political leaders of both parties to stand up for the independence of the Justice Department, to stand up to these attacks that show that the Justice Department is politicized and needs to be dismantled. We need to dismantle the FBI,” Stanton said. (See more from Stanton below.)
trump, In response to Biden’s move, raised the issue defendants and people convicted of violence in the Capitol On January 6, 2021, while trying to overturn the results of the 2020 elections.
“Does Joe’s Pardon to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages who have been in prison for years? So much abuse and departure from justice!” Trump Posted on Truth Social.
On Monday, the office of special counsel David Weiss pushed back on Biden’s claim that the prosecution of Hunter Biden was politically motivated, calling such claims “baseless.” In a lawsuit challenging Hunter Biden’s request to dismiss California tax and fraud charges in light of his father’s pardon, Weiss noted that there are a number of judges had already denied the young Biden’s allegations of retaliation.
While several members of Congress have so far spoken out about the pardon, one prominent group has remained silent. those Democrats saw as early opportunities To run for president in 2028.
Three big takeaways from the 2024 election
By Mark Murray
In addition to indicating that the 2024 presidential election is competitive and uncertain, the polls have captured the political atmosphere that has shaped the contest and may continue to shape politics. Here are some of the biggest lessons we learned.
Most broadly, the polls accurately portrayed an electorate that sees the nation headed in the wrong direction, with incumbent Joe Biden’s approval rating below 40 — a historic danger zone for the party in control of the White House.
Apparently, the NBC News Exit Poll found 73% of voters said they were angry or dissatisfied with the country’s leadership, while only 40% said they approved of Biden’s job performance.
In addition, the polls predicted many of the key demographic trends that will determine the 2024 election, including Trump’s success with Latino voters.
The NBC News/Telemundo/CNBC Latino poll It was among polls showing Trump winning well before the election. Many polls have caught Biden and the Democrats’ relative struggles with young voters, particularly some men, earlier than in other recent elections.
But surveys, including NBC News surveyerred in exaggerating the size of the gender gap in support for Harris among female voters and for Trump among men.
according to exit pollHarris won women voters by 8 points, while Trump won men by 13 points — a 21-point gender gap that matched the last presidential election. That was smaller than the 30-point gender gap the NBC News poll showed.
The key thing to remember with the gender gap: Combine it with education and race to see how and where it widens. Harris won white women with a college degree by 16 points, while Trump won white men without a college degree by 40 points — a whopping 56-point gap between the two disparate groups.
🗞️ The best stories of the day
- 🚨 Sorry: GOP lawmakers were openly outraged after Biden pardoned his son Hunter, calling it an attempt to “evade responsibility” and calling the president a “hypocrite.” More →
- 🚨 Sorry, continued: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended Biden’s decision to pardon his son, despite repeatedly telling the press that the president had no such plans. More →
- 🏛 Court time: The Supreme Court will hear a dispute over the Food and Drug Administration’s refusal to approve flavored e-cigarettes due to public health concerns and test the FDA’s role in green-lighting new tobacco products. More →
- ➡️ Preparing for Trump 2.0: Two Democratic senators are calling on the Biden administration to issue a policy directive that could temporarily limit the ability of the U.S. military to deploy domestically after Trump takes office. More →
- ➡️ Preparing for Trump 2.0, continued: Consumer advocates say they are ready for sweeping changes to one of Washington’s newest financial watchdogs under Trump, whose allies have promised sweeping regulation of companies that manage Americans’ money. More →
- ✈️ Air Force One – to Angola: Biden became the first American head of state to visit the South African country of Angola, where he will showcase US-backed infrastructure projects linking Angola, Zambia and Congo. More →
That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – email us politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com
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