Jill Biden on Hunter’s pardon and her husband’s turbulent political end

About this episode

Jill Biden discusses her husband's decision to drop out of the reelection campaign and the pardon of their son Hunter in this episode of NPR's Newsmakers.

Former first lady Jill Biden is shedding new light on one of the biggest decisions her husband made as president: to drop out of his own reelection campaign. In this episode of NPR’s Newsmakers , Biden sits down with host Scott Detrow to discuss her new book, View from the East Wing: A Memoir . She opens up about the infamous 2024 presidential debate that doomed President Joe Biden’s campaign -- when his performance so concerned those in his inner circle, Biden says her husband was checked by doctors after leaving the stage -- and the personal and political toll of the months that followed. She also reveals Joe Biden “truly changed his mind” on pardoning their son Hunter, who was convicted on federal gun and tax charges in 2024. She says it was then-candidate Donald Trump’s rhetoric about Hunter’s criminal cases that eventually led her husband to pardon their son, who faced prison time. NPR's Newsmakers is where you'll find NPR's biggest interviews. We post new episodes as soon as they're available -- any day of the week. Follow or subscribe on Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you watch or listen to podcasts so you always get the latest episode as soon as possible. You can also find…

People in this episode

Host: Scott Detrow

Guest: Jill Biden

Topics covered

• Jill Biden
• Hunter Biden
• Joe Biden
• 2024 election
• political decisions
• memoir
• presidential campaign

Keywords

• Jill Biden
• Hunter Biden
• Joe Biden
• pardon
• 2024 election
• memoir
• political campaign

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NPR

Books & works: View from the East Wing: A Memoir

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