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NonePublicly, Joe Biden never wavered. Privately, those close to him that the President would eventually intervene and end the federal prosecutions against his son. Sunday evening’s surprise announcement of a sweeping pardon for Hunter Biden sent Washington ablaze with . Talk turned to what this about-face would mean for the President’s , the impact it might have on the Justice Department’s already battered , and whether President-elect Donald Trump, himself a , would accept the pardon as the final word. It all felt very loud, very urgent—and, to some, very predictable. Yet, when you take a look at Biden’s choice—making use of a power in the Constitution with very few limits—it starts to make some sense. Yes, Biden flip-flopped on a pretty absolute not to exercise the right to spare his son. Yes, it flies in the face of Democrats’ long-standing criticism about Trump, that no one should be regardless of ties to the Oval Office. And, yes, this is going to dog Biden’s final weeks in office in ways that could distract from his urgent work to build a legacy after a half-century in public life. But all those criticisms ignore a bigger truth: Joe Biden faced a trickier decision than whether or not to keep his only living son out of prison. Many will ding it as an entirely selfish move by a guilty father going with his gut. Yet, in a way, this was maybe the most considered decision Biden has made this calendar year—and that includes the jarring in July that he would step aside as the Democratic Party’s nominee. Here are the six factors that explain why Biden signed the roughly 200-word order: For years, Hunter Biden and his work for a Ukrainian energy company has been catnip for conservatives—many of whom still believe that the money paid to Hunter for his on the Burisma board was a bag of cash for the Bidens, with Joe Biden skimming a share from the top. (So much of the GOP case against the Bidens has been and their efforts to Joe Biden fell apart.) With Trump about to be back in charge of the Justice Department and FBI—including an FBI potentially led by an outspoken who has endorsed Trump’s to trample his foes in retribution—there was a quiet fear that the President-elect would make Hunter Biden’s misdeeds a priority—even if Hunter Biden was already serving out a prison sentence. Joe Biden’s signature on an extraordinarily broad pardon rendered those efforts pointless, as no federal charges can be summoned. There is no point disputing this. Most experts that for anyone else facing these charges, the cases would have been likely with an in-and-out plea deal, one that was once on the table but by a Trump-appointed judge for its sweep. The prosecution became even more novel once the Trump-nominated U.S. Attorney for Delaware special counsel for the Hunter Biden case. With protected standing, Special Counsel David Weiss continued down a path that convictions on three federal felony counts for illegally buying a gun and nine guilty pleas on federal tax charges. Hunter Biden was due to be sentenced on the gun conviction on Dec. 12, followed by a Dec. 16 sentencing on the tax evasion plea. If given the maximum penalties—considered unlikely—he would have faced up to 42 years in prison. Yes, Joe Biden flip-flopped with zero apology. Yes, he was running around the world—literally— everyone the justice system worked for both his son and his rival, Trump. Yes, he would take from some of the same folks whose approval Biden has chased for decades. But voters rendered their verdict on Biden’s by-the-books approach when they chose to Trump to power. Heck, Trump repeatedly mass pardons for those involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on Congress. Voters decided that was appealing—or at least not disqualifying—and chose to give Trump the keys again. If Trump seems to think waving the magic wand of legal do-overs comes with zero costs to him, maybe Biden is rightly betting that he enjoys similar leeway. After all, Trump’s first term included freebies for former Illinois Gov. , former NYPD Commissioner , and “ ” . He also employed his leniency power to spare five and advisers, three uniformed service members of , seven former members of Congress—all Republicans—and 10 health care providers in a massive Medicare fraud scheme. Given that recent history, imagine if Hunter Biden’s mid-December sentencing included years in prison—for transgressions that experts say are rarely prosecuted. What would the public reaction have been if Joe Biden, in the final days of his presidency, refused to use a get-out-of-jail-free card for his very own son? Joe Biden spent his half-century in politics insisting that politics had no place in the judicial system, but that belief ran head-first into a competing precept that family stands above all other concerns. The President’s over the death of his son Beau Biden has been the of so much of the Biden family’s decision-making in the last decade, and surely factored into the President’s thinking as he weighed the prospect of even more his grandkids spending time without their own father. It was a politically fraught move, but not an unexpected one. After all, when an Iowan asked Biden about Hunter’s work in Ukraine back in December of 2019, the then-former VP the man “a damned liar” and challenged him to a push-up contest. Joe Biden followed-up with a to keep his own house in order if elected. And not for nothing, Hunter Biden has been incredibly open about his with addiction, and has seemingly around his life in the years after some admittedly poor choices. A lengthy jail term would do little to teach Hunter Biden any lessons he hasn’t already internalized. That argument appeared to help Joe Biden get to yes. The pardon power is absolute and the President’s alone. There’s no sign off needed from Congress and no one in his administration has any real authority to stop him. That’s why, when Biden said “I will not pardon him” on June 13, some were skeptical. A pardon was always an option, no matter how much his aides and otherwise on All Things Hunt. How else to explain why Joe Biden Hunter Biden to a state dinner just days after the younger Biden cut a doomed deal with federal prosecutors, led by an Attorney General attending the same event? Despite Hunter Biden’s ghosts, he still has sway inside his father’s inner circle as the eldest living child of a once-imagined political . The White House released the news late Sunday, just as Biden was about to hop on a flight heading out on his final foreign trip as President. That puts the President out of Washington until Thursday with no formal press conference on the books, a strategy that follows a South America trip last month that came with a similar media . That leaves a whole lot of time to fill in a Washington subsumed by this apparent violation of Biden’s vow not to do what he just did. And, aboard the presidential flight on Air Force One, the White House’s top spokeswoman on the reversal. And on Monday, as she welcomed National Guard members to the White House to tour the holiday decorations, First Lady Jill Biden got pelted with a question about the pardon. "Of course I support the pardon of my son," Dr. Biden said in the White House’s State Dining Room. On top of that, Washington faces its seemingly auto-renewal gift of a holiday-themed spending deadline; this year, Congress has until Dec. 20 to kick the can down the road, and there’s a whole lot of just how far into Trump’s second term they should be looking toward. Put simply: the pardon is not going to stay front of mind for most Americans, and Trump is likely to find a way to hijack the public discourse as Team Joe runs down the clock.Police release new photos as they search for the gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO NEW YORK (AP) — Two law enforcement officials say a masked gunman who stalked and killed the leader of one of the largest U.S. health insurance companies on a Manhattan sidewalk used ammunition emblazoned with the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose." The official were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke Thursday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Police also released photos of a person they say is wanted for questioning in the ambush the day before of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. The words on the ammunition may have been a reference to tactics insurance companies use to avoid paying claims. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are bringing Trump's DOGE to Capitol Hill WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s DOGE time at the U.S. Capitol. Billionaire Elon Musk and fellow business titan Vivek Ramaswamy arrived on Capitol Hill for meetings with lawmakers. The two are heading up President-elect Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, with its plans to “dismantle” the federal government. Trump tapped the duo to come up with ways for firing federal workers, cutting government programs and slashing federal regulations — all part of Trump's agenda for a second-term at the White House. House Speaker Mike Johnson said there's going to be “a lot of change” in Washington. Hegseth faces senators' concerns not only about his behavior but also his views on women in combat WASHINGTON (AP) — Pete Hegseth has spent the week on Capitol Hill trying to reassure Republican senators that he is fit to lead President-elect Donald Trump’s Department of Defense in the wake of high-profile allegations about excessive drinking and sexual assault. But senators in both parties have also expressed concern about another issue — Hegseth’s frequent comments that women should not serve in frontline military combat jobs. As he meets with senators for a fourth day Thursday, his professional views on women troops are coming under deeper scrutiny. Hegseth said this week that “we have amazing women who serve our military.” Pressed if they should serve in combat, Hegseth said they already do. Hamas official says Gaza ceasefire talks have resumed after weekslong hiatus ISTANBUL (AP) — A Hamas official says that after a weekslong hiatus international mediators have resumed negotiating with the militant group and Israel over a ceasefire in Gaza, and that he was hopeful a deal to end the 14-month war was within reach. Ceasefire negotiations were halted last month when Qatar suspended its talks with mediators from Egypt and the United States over frustration with a lack of progress between Israel and Hamas. But Bassem Naim, an official in Hamas’ political wing, said Thursday in an interview with The Associated Press that there has been a “reactivation” of efforts to end the fighting, release hostages from Gaza and free Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Why the rebel capture of Syria's Hama, a city with a dark history, matters BEIRUT (AP) — One of the darkest moments in the modern history of the Arab world happened more than four decades ago, when then-Syrian President Hafez Assad launched what came to be known as the Hama Massacre. The slaughter was named for the Syrian city where 10,000 to 40,000 people were killed or disappeared in a government attack that began on Feb. 2, 1982, and lasted for nearly a month. Hama was turned into ruins. The memory of the assault and the monthlong siege on the city remains visceral in Syrian and Arab minds. Now Islamist insurgents have captured the city in a moment many Syrians have awaited for over 40 years. France's Macron vows to stay in office till end of term, says he'll name a new prime minister soon PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron has vowed to stay in office until the end of his term in 2027 and announced that he will name a new prime minister within days. In his address to the nation on Thursday, Macron came out fighting, laying blame at the door of his opponents on the far right for bringing down the government of Michel Barnier. He said they chose “not to do but to undo” and that they “chose disorder.” The president also said the far right and the far left had united in what he called “an anti-Republican front.” He said he’ll name a new prime minister within days but gave no hints who that might be. 7.0 earthquake off Northern California prompts brief tsunami warning SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The National Weather Service has canceled its tsunami warning for the U.S. West Coast after there was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. According to the U.S. Geological Survey on Thursday, at least 5.3 million people in California were under a tsunami warning after the earthquake struck. It was felt as far south as San Francisco, where residents felt a rolling motion for several seconds. It was followed by smaller aftershocks. There were no immediate reports of major damage or injury. Yoon replaces the defense minister as South Korea's parliament moves to vote on their impeachments SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s president has replaced his defense minister as opposition parties moved to impeach both men over the stunning-but-brief imposition of martial law that brought armed troops into Seoul streets. Opposition parties are pushing for a vote on motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday evening. They hold 192 seats but need 200 votes for the motion to pass. Yoon’s office said he decided to replace Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun with Choi Byung Hyuk, a retired general who is South Korea’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Kim earlier apologized and said he ordered troops to carry out duties related to martial law. The Foreign Ministry also worked to mitigate the backlash and concern over South Korea's democracy. The US government is closing a women's prison and other facilities after years of abuse and decay WASHINGTON (AP) — The Associated Press has learned that the federal Bureau of Prisons is permanently closing its “rape club” women’s prison in California and will idle six facilities in a sweeping realignment after years of abuse, decay and mismanagement. The agency informed employees and Congress on Thursday that it plans to shutter the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California, and its deactivate minimum-security prison camps in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Florida. Staff and inmates are being moved to other facilities. The closures come amid an AP investigation that has uncovered deep, previously unreported flaws within the Bureau of Prisons. From outsider to the Oval Office, bitcoin surges as a new administration embraces crypto NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin burst on the scene after trust had withered in the financial system and Washington’s ability to protect people from it. Now, it’s Washington’s embrace of bitcoin that’s sending it to records. Bitcoin briefly surged above $103,000 after President-elect Donald Trump said he will nominate Paul Atkins, who's seen as friendly to crypto, to be the Securities and Exchange Commission's next chair. The crypto industry, meanwhile, did its part to bring politicians friendly to digital currencies into Washington. It's a twist from bitcoin's early days, when it was lauded as a kind of electronic cash that wouldn’t be beholden to any government or financial institution.

TORONTO (AP) — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Donald Trump that Americans would also suffer if the president-elect follows through on a plan to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products , a Canadian minister who attended their recent dinner said Monday. Trump threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico if they don’t stop what he called the flow of drugs and migrants across their borders with the United States. He said on social media last week that he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders. Canadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whose responsibilities include border security, attended a dinner with Trump and Trudeau at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club on Friday. Trudeau requested the meeting in a bid to avoid the tariffs by convincing Trump that the northern border is nothing like the U.S. southern border with Mexico . "The prime minister of course spoke about the importance of protecting the Canadian economy and Canadian workers from tariffs, but we also discussed with our American friends the negative impact that those tariffs could have on their economy, on affordability in the United States as well," LeBlanc said in Parliament. If Trump makes good on his threat to slap 25% tariffs on everything imported from Mexico and Canada, the price increases that could follow will collide with his campaign promise to give American families a break from inflation. Economists say companies would have little choice but to pass along the added costs, dramatically raising prices for food, clothing, automobiles, alcohol and other goods. The Produce Distributors Association, a Washington trade group, said last week that tariffs will raise prices for fresh fruit and vegetables and hurt U.S. farmers when the countries retaliate. Canada is already examining possible retaliatory tariffs on certain items from the U.S. should Trump follow through on the threat. After his dinner with Trump, Trudeau returned home without assurances the president-elect will back away from threatened tariffs on all products from the major American trading partner. Trump called the talks “productive” but signaled no retreat from a pledge that Canada says unfairly lumps it in with Mexico over the flow of drugs and migrants into the United States. “The idea that we came back empty handed is completely false,” LeBlanc said. “We had a very productive discussion with Mr. Trump and his future Cabinet secretaries. ... The commitment from Mr. Trump to continue to work with us was far from empty handed.” Joining Trump and Trudeau at dinner were Howard Lutnick, Trump’s nominee for commerce secretary, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s pick to lead the Interior Department, and Mike Waltz, Trump’s choice to be his national security adviser. Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., Kirsten Hillman, told The Associated Press on Sunday that “the message that our border is so vastly different than the Mexican border was really understood.” Hillman, who sat at an adjacent table to Trudeau and Trump, said Canada is not the problem when it comes to drugs and migrants. On Monday, Mexico’s president rejected those comments. “Mexico must be respected, especially by its trading partners,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said. She said Canada had its own problems with fentanyl consumption and “could only wish they had the cultural riches Mexico has.” Flows of migrants and seizures of drugs at the two countries’ border are vastly different. U.S. customs agents seized 43 pounds of fentanyl at the Canadian border during the last fiscal year, compared with 21,100 pounds at the Mexican border. Most of the fentanyl reaching the U.S. — where it causes about 70,000 overdose deaths annually — is made by Mexican drug cartels using precursor chemicals smuggled from Asia. On immigration, the U.S. Border Patrol reported 1.53 million encounters with migrants at the southwest border with Mexico between October 2023 and September 2024. That compares to 23,721 encounters at the Canadian border during that time. Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports as well. Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing for national security.AHL suspends Griffins' William Lagesson three games for UFC-style chokehold - Sportsnet.ca

US stock indices pushed to fresh records Tuesday, shrugging off tariff threats from President-elect Donald Trump while European equities retreated. Trump, who doesn't take office until January 20, made his threat in social media posts Monday night, announcing huge import tariffs against neighbors Canada and Mexico and also rival China if they do not stop illegal immigration and drug smuggling.

CECO Environmental Announces Expiration of HSR Waiting Period

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