If it's Monday, President Biden facing intensifying criticism from both parties after pardoning

his son Hunter, despite repeatedly vowing not to, while at the same time accusing his own

Justice Department of being infected by raw politics.

Plus, another looming confirmation clash as President-elect Trump

taps longtime loyalists Cash Patel to lead the FBI, after Patel promised to purge the agency

and go after judges, lawyers, and journalists critical Trump. And meet the New York State Senator

vying to lead and revive the Democratic Party

as he pushes Democrats to overhaul their messaging strategy and break their Beltway image. Welcome to Meet the Press Now.

I'm Gabe Gutierrez in Washington, and we're tracking the escalating bipartisan backlash

after President Biden issued a sweeping pardon for his son Hunter, despite repeatedly promising

he would not do so. Hunter Biden was

sent to be sentenced later this month in two separate criminal cases, in a tax evasion case where

he pleaded guilty, and on federal gun charges where he was convicted by a jury. The president's

pardon going well beyond those cases, also covering any offense Hunter committed or may have committed over the last decade.

Appealing to the American public in a statement explaining his decision, the president writing, quote,

I believe in the justice system.

But as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process,

and it led to a miscarriage of justice.

Once I made this decision this weekend, there was no sense in delaying it further.

I hope Americans will understand why a father and a president would come to this decision, Biden wrote.

And that announcement comes after months of the

president, First Lady, and the White House publicly insisting that Hunter Biden would not receive a

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