Like many previous years, 2024 was a significant one. It marked both the Summer Olympics, a total solar eclipse, and the US election. While these may be prominent at the time, talk of them dwindles after they end. Following the 2024 election, an unpredicted series of events created their own talk.
On December 1st, President Joe Biden released a statement stating that his son, Hunter Biden, has a complete and unconditional pardon. This comes after promises made before and after the presidential race this year that he would not do so. This pardon makes it so that Hunter cannot be sentenced for any criminal offenses and there is no chance of him being sent to prison.
On June 7th, 2024, Hunter Biden was found guilty on three charges that were related to a firearm he purchased in 2018. Hunter had lied on a mandatory form when purchasing the gun that required the person in possession to not be using or addicted to drugs. President Biden released a statement following the June trial that he would accept the trial’s outcome. The president’s reasoning behind his pardon was that he felt that the judicial system “selectively and unfairly prosecuted” his son. This action faced much scrutiny and little support.
On December 23rd, President Biden commuted 37 of the 40 inmates who were on death row, meaning their sentences are now life in prison without parole instead of lethal injection. In a statement from Biden on why the choice was made, he explains his need to fight violent crime in America and believes that “we must stop the use of the death penalty at the federal level” to achieve less violence.
Some commuted include Jurijus Kadamovas, who was convicted in 2007 for his involvement in the killings and kidnappings-for-ransom of five Georgian and Russian immigrants, and Ricardo Sanchez Junior, who was convicted in 2009 for participation in the drug-related killing of a family, including two children. Three remain on death row. Robert Bowers was responsible for the Tree of Life Synagogue Attack, the deadliest antisemitic attack in the U.S., which killed 11 worshipers and wounded seven more. Dylann Roof is accountable for the Mother Emanuel AME Church Attack and was the first person to be ordered to be executed for a federal hate crime. Lastly, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev remains on death row for the crimes committed during the Boston Marathon.
On January 3rd, 2025, President Biden announced he would block Nippon Steel, a Japanese company, from acquiring 14.3 billion dollars worth of US Steel. Biden believes that steel is a pillar of America’s sound economy and that foreign investment in it would threaten our national security. The CEO of US Steel, who believes that Biden made the wrong decision and strained relations with Japan, opposed this decision.
President Biden and his administration have made their final decisions and changes prior to Trump’s inauguration on January 20th, 2025. Trump has yet to announce his changes to these choices.
