Sen. Lankford Reacts To Hunter Biden Pardon, Discusses Legislative Priorities And Leadership Role

Oklahoma Senator James Lankford joined News 9 at 9 on Monday morning to share his thoughts on the surprise decision by President Joe Biden to pardon his son, Hunter Biden, on various charges, along with his priorities as he prepares for a busy legislative period ahead.

When asked about his reaction to the news of the pardon, Lankford said he was not surprised despite Biden saying he would let the justice system work.

"The biggest surprise really was the size of the pardon... this is unprecedented to do a pardon because the pardon wasn't just a pardon for the crimes that he's currently facing and that he's been convicted of, it was for anything he might have done at any time," Lankford said.

He said there hasn't been a pardon like this since Richard Nixon.

"He basically said my son, no matter what he did, all the drug abuse, all everything else, he's released from everything," Lankford said.

Looking ahead to the final weeks of the year, Lankford highlighted the important legislative work remaining.

"There is a lot still to do," Lankford said. "We have three weeks of session to get it done. It's a giant bill. We have 12 appropriation bills that have to be done. We have the farm bill, we need to get an extension on that. We can't let that expire."

As the new year approaches, Lankford also spoke about President Trump’s cabinet picks, particularly his choice for border czar, Tom Homan.

"Tom Homan will be inside the White House kind of guiding the whole policy. There’s a guy named Stephen Miller that will also be in the White House dealing with policy on this. They’re already laying out an agenda as President Trump announced, I’m going to do tariffs on Mexico if they don’t have to shut down the border," Lankford said.

Lankford also commented on the potential confirmation of Pete Hegseth as the next Secretary of Defense, addressing concerns over his past.

"He’s a patriot. He’s somebody that’s been very passionate and very outspoken about the military, but there’s also lots of other questions on it," Lankford said. "He has a very strong military record and I think he like everybody else will get a fair hearing."

As a new vice-chair of the Republican Senate Conference, Lankford reflected on his role.

"The good part about Oklahoma for this is, it gives me the opportunities in Oklahoma to sit at the leadership table to be a voice in there to say, here’s the direction we need to go," he said.