Hunter Biden’s pardon sparks a flood of questions about the Fifth Amendment ‘loophole’

President Biden’s sweeping pardon of his son Hunter Biden sparked a flurry of new legal speculation Tuesday about how or whether the younger Biden will be able to enforce his Fifth Amendment privileges protecting against self-incrimination — and how the broad immunity granted to Hunter might be against be twisted.

While Hunter Biden is actually protected from prosecution For all federal crimes he “committed or may have committed” between January 1, 2014 and December 1, 2024, this does not apply to the people around him – meaning Hunter Biden could theoretically be asked to commit all of them Family members or others close to him may testify in potential cases brought against him.

Biden’s sweeping pardon of Hunter contradicts longstanding rhetoric on executive power: “No one is above the law”

Hunter Biden leaves a House Oversight Committee meeting on Capitol Hill. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

In these cases, pardoning Hunter Biden could actually limit his ability to invoke Fifth Amendment privileges since he would no longer face criminal charges.

However, the pardon only applies to federal crimes, not state crimes, and it remains unclear how or if Republicans might take action in the coming weeks and months to close this potential loophole.

Still, the question of Fifth Amendment protections is of paramount importance as Republicans prepare to regain the majority in both chambers of Congress in January, raising the possibility of potential Republican-led investigations into the outgoing president.

In an interview Monday night on Newsmax, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said he plans to discuss the issue of Hunter Biden’s Fifth Amendment privileges with Trump’s nominee for attorney general, Pam Bondi.

“I look forward to discussing this with Attorney General Bondi,” the Kentucky Republican said.

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Then-Vice President-elect Joe Biden with his son Hunter Biden during a reenactment of the Senate oath-taking ceremony in the Old Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)

“We still have information we requested that we never received,” Comer said, adding that he believes the White House “to this day is blocking the lawful evidence we should have received.”

Any investigation into Biden’s family after he leaves office would likely be criticized by Democrats as both futile and a waste of taxpayer money, given the nature of previous investigations, Hunter’s own pardon and Biden’s own lame-duck status.

Comer’s office did not respond to a question from Fox News Digital about whether the House Oversight Committee plans to investigate Biden’s actions in the next session of Congress or her views on Hunter’s ability to invoke the Fifth.

But questions about this potential loophole come just days after President Joe Biden announced sweeping clemency for his only surviving son.

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Earlier Tuesday, the federal judge overseeing Hunter Biden’s gun case in Delaware announced the suspension of further court proceedings, including a scheduled sentencing date in December. Earlier this year, a jury in Delaware found Hunter guilty of all three federal firearms crimes charges against him.

In dismissing the case, U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika did not dismiss the case entirely, as requested by Hunter Biden’s legal team.

In September, Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to federal tax evasion charges in California, which includes the pardon.

The judge in the case, Judge Mark Scarsi, has not yet announced whether he will dismiss the case against Hunter or dismiss the case entirely.