A former business partner and longtime friend of Hunter Biden revealed the blueprint that he wants the Department of Justice to enforce in the upcoming Trump administration after President Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter Biden. When asked to react to the news, Devon Archer, who served on Ukrainian energy company Burisma's board alongside Hunter, avoided talking about the Bidens and instead expressed optimism about the Trump-led DOJ.
"I look forward to the Trump Administration restoring the Justice Department to an institution that reflects the founding principles of justice and adheres to federal laws akin to its inception on July 1, 1870," Archer told Fox News Digital.
"The DOJ needs to be an impartial institution again rather than being driven by personal or political agendas as witnessed in recent years," he continued.
Archers was previously sentenced to prison by federal judge in 2018 for his alleged role in defrauding a Native American tribe by fraudulently issuing $60 million in tribal bonds after he was convicted by a jury.
His conviction, however, was thrown out later that year by U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams in Manhattan because she was "left with an unwavering concern that Archer is innocent of the crimes charged," according to Reuters.
A month prior to the 2020 election, Archer's conviction was reinstated by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and in February 2022, he was sentenced to one year and one day in jail.
At the time of the sentencing, Archer's lawyer, Matthew Schwartz, argued that Archer was innocent and said they would file a series of appeals, which has postponed Archer serving his sentence.
As Crosswalk Headlines previously reported, the president provided a "full and unconditional" pardon to Hunter Sunday night, following the first son's conviction in two separate federal cases earlier this year. The pardon covers offenses he "has committed or may have committed" from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 1, 2024, which includes Hunter's tenure with Burisma, among additional shady foreign business dealings.
The decision was met with controversy from Republicans, who argue that Hunter's business dealings during his father's tenure as vice president were illegitimate.
Last year, Archer detailed the business connections between Joe and Hunter Biden when he spoke before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee. He noted that Biden was placed on the phone to sell "the brand", according to a transcript of the hearing.
These calls included dinners with a French energy company in Paris as well as in China with Jonathan Li of BHR Partners, a state-backed private equity firm.
A source previously told Fox News Digital that Archer stated in his testimony that it was beneficial to have Hunter Biden join Burisma's board since his father was Vice President at the time. Without "the brand," Archer said Burisma would have likely shut down.
However, the president, his 2020 campaign staff, and top White House aides previously claimed at least 20 times that Biden "never discussed" his son Hunter's business dealings with him, which was contradicted by Archer's testimony.
Democrats have maintained that Hunter is not guilty of wrongdoing regarding his business dealings, and the president defended his son in his pardon on Sunday.
"Without aggravating factors like use in a crime, multiple purchases, or buying a weapon as a straw purchaser, people are almost never brought to trial on felony charges solely for how they filled out a gun form," Biden said. "Those who were late paying their taxes because of serious addictions but paid them back subsequently with interest and penalties are typically given non-criminal resolutions. It is clear that Hunter was treated differently."
Biden also argued that the attack laid upon his son is ultimately directed at himself.
"There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution," the president wrote. "In trying to break Hunter, they've tried to break me – and there's no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough."
"I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision," he concluded.
Related Article: Joe Biden Pardons Hunter Biden in a Controversial Decision
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Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.