A loving act of mercy from a father who has already experienced much suffering? Or a hypocritical political maneuver reminiscent of his great enemy? Maybe both can be true.

Joe Biden’s announcement on Sunday that he had pardoned his son Hunter, who faces conviction in two criminal cases, may have been the result of a Shakespearean battle between head and heart.

On the one hand, Biden is one of the last great institutionalists in Washington. “From the day I took office, I have said that I would not interfere in the Justice Department’s decision-making,” he said Sunday in an unusually direct and personal statement. Undermining the separation of powers contradicts every fiber of his political nature.

On the other hand, Biden is nothing without family. His speeches are peppered with references to his parents. As a senator, he once took a train from Washington to Wilmington, Delaware, to blow out the candles on a birthday cake for his eight-year-old daughter Ashley at the station, then cross the platform and take the next train back to work.

The death of his first wife, Neilia Hunter Biden, and his 13-month-old daughter Naomi in a car accident and, much later, the death of his son Beau from brain cancer left a profound mark on Biden. In this context, Hunter’s status as the first child of a sitting president to be prosecuted will have caused his father pain in what Ernest Hemingway referred to as “the broken places.”

Hunter was convicted this summer of lying about his drug use when purchasing a gun. Joe Biden categorically ruled out a pardon or commutation for his son, telling reporters: “I stand by the jury’s decision. “I will do that and I will not forgive him.” Hunter also pleaded guilty in a separate tax evasion case and should be charged in both cases will be sentenced later this month.

Biden reportedly pondered for months about what to do. Donald Trump’s victory in last month’s presidential election was the deciding factor. The prospect of leaving Hunter at the mercy of Trump’s surely politicized, retaliatory Justice Department was unbearable. Biden typically seeks advice from close relatives and likely made the decision only after discussing it over an intimate Thanksgiving weekend.

“No reasonable person looking at the facts of Hunter’s cases can come to any conclusion other than that Hunter was chosen solely because he is my son – and that is false,” the president said in a statement, calling it “a miscarriage of justice.” .

He added: “There have been attempts to break Hunter – who has been sober for five and a half years despite relentless attacks and selective prosecution. “In trying to break Hunter, they tried to break me – and there is no reason for that Assuming it will stop here. Enough is enough.”

Joe Biden’s defenders will surely argue that the gun case wouldn’t have gotten this far if Hunter had been a normal citizen, and that his father simply did it wrong. Republicans spent years hyping investigations into Hunter that failed to produce a single piece of evidence linking his father to corruption.

Eric Holder, a former attorney general, wrote Social media said no U.S. attorney “would have prosecuted this case given the underlying facts.” After a five-year investigation, the facts established only made this clear. Had his name been Joe Smith, the decision would have been – fundamentally and more fairly – a rejection. Pardon warranted.”

It was also noted that this is not the first time that pardons have smacked of nepotism. As president, Bill Clinton pardoned his half-brother on old cocaine charges, and Trump pardoned the father of Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, on tax evasion and retaliation against a cooperating witness, even though those men had already served their prison sentences in both cases. Trump also used the dog days of his first presidency to pardon the rogues’ gallery of Steve Bannon, Michael Flynn, Paul Manafort and Roger Stone.

And yet, for many Americans, there will be something disturbing about a double-standard president pardoning a member of his own family before there are numerous other worthy cases. Of course, Republicans in the House of Representatives pounced on the “Biden crime family” with even more hyperbole.

But there were also more thoughtful objections. Jared Polis, the Democratic governor of Colorado, wrote on social media: “While as a father I certainly understand President Joe Biden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he told his family about this “This is a bad precedent that could be abused by future presidents and will unfortunately damage his reputation.”

Joe Walsh, a former Republican congressman turned Trump critic, said on the MSNBC network: “Joe Biden has repeatedly said he wouldn’t do that, so he’s repeatedly lied.” That just reinforces people’s cynicism toward him of politics and that cynicism strengthens Trump because Trump can say, “I’m not a unique threat.” Everyone does that. “If I do something for my child, my son-in-law, or whatever, then Joe Biden will do the same thing.” Me I understand, but This was a selfish move by Biden that only strengthens Trump politically. It just deflates.”

The Trump context cannot be ignored in this moral labyrinth. Next month he will be the first convicted felon to be sworn in as president, even though three cases against him have been all but dropped. He is already in the process of appointing loyalists to the FBI and Justice Department.

Michelle Obama once said, “When they go low, we go high.” On Sunday, 82-year-old Joe Biden, headed for exit with little to lose, decided to take a dive. Maybe that’s what any parent would have done.