Podcaster and former The View host Meghan McCain — who has never missed an opportunity to invoke her famous father, the late Republican Sen. John McCain — blasted Hunter Biden as a “nepo baby” after he received a pardon from his dad, President Joe Biden.
The irony of McCain’s comments wasn’t lost on her liberals and progressive critics, who mocked the conservative pundit for her apparent lack of self-awareness.
“No one is above the law except the Presidents [sic] nepo baby is a helluva partying message for democrats,” McCain tweeted on Monday morning in reaction to the president giving clemency to his troubled son.
Of course, McCain is hardly alone in railing against the president for issuing the pardon just weeks before his son is scheduled to be sentenced in two separate criminal cases. On December 12, Hunter was set to be sentenced for his conviction on federal gun charges. Four days later, he was to also receive a sentence for the federal tax charges he pleaded guilty to in June.
Unsurprisingly, President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans bashed the president’s decision, labeling him a “liar and a hypocrite” for pardoning Hunter after repeatedly saying before the election he would not do so while insisting “no one is above the law.” Many Democrats, though, joined their GOP counterparts in criticizing the leader of their party.
“While as a father I certainly understand President @JoeBiden’s natural desire to help his son by pardoning him, I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis declared.
At the same time, the president has defended his move to spare his son prison time and unilaterally wipe out any convictions and potential criminal charges related to Hunter’s business dealings over a decade-plus span.
“No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong,” he said.
Still, McCain deciding to take a swipe at Hunter for having a famous dad was a step too far for some, considering the role nepotism has seemingly played in her own career. As some noted, McCain even has the term “political nepo baby” in her social media bio.
“Meghan, you should never — under any circumstances — use ‘nepo baby.’ How can you not know this?!” Davidson College professor Isaac Bailey wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Is Meghan McCain talking about nepo babie???” YouTuber Jack Cocchiarella wondered.
McCain even received the New York Times Pitchbot treatment. “Hunter Biden thinks he deserves special treatment because he has a famous politician father — by Meghan McCain,” the satirical account posted on Bluesky.
This isn’t the first time McCain has been ridiculed for calling out others over their famous familial connections. She’s even previously called Hunter Biden the “ultimate product of nepotism,” prompting social media users to label her “NepoBarbie.” At the same time, when speaking of the role nepotism has played in her career, she’s said her “work ethic speaks for itself” and she “no longer cares” if someone thinks she’s “going to be a lazy, spoiled brat.”
Meanwhile, her former colleagues at The View have defended the president’s decision to pardon Hunter, saying outgoing commanders-in-chief “do it every time” and they’re “not sure why the pearl-clutching is happening now.”