Only in the United States!

By Alex P. Vidal 

“There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured with what is right in America.” – William J. Clinton

IT’S impossible to do this in the Philippines. It never happened before, and it will never happen given the social and cultural climate and political culture that Filipinos have embraced since fighting for independence against the Spanish colonizers in 1565.

First, the former president of the United States. Now, the son of the sitting president of the United States. In quick succession, the twin courtroom dramas occurred two weeks apart.

Only in the United States!

Will President Joe Biden’s son, convicted felon Hunter Biden go to jail now that he has been convicted by the 12-person jury June 11 of three felony counts in the federal gun trial?

Theoretically, the answer is both yes and no. We will have to wait for events that will unfold after the sentencing which will reportedly happen about three to four months after the June 11 conviction.

Like former President Donald Trump, who was convicted of 34 counts of felony charges in a hush money trial, a judge, Maryellen Noreika, will have to determine whether Hunter Biden should be imprisoned for the felony conviction.

Hunter Biden was convicted for making false statements on a federal gun form about his drug use, and one count for owning a gun unlawfully during an 11-day period.

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The three felony counts carry up to 25 years in prison and a fine of up to $750,000. But whether the president’s son is sentenced to prison—an outcome that could have been avoided with a plea deal that fell apart last year—remains to be seen.

The judge estimated that sentencing would occur 120 days after the conviction, when she will determine whether Hunter Biden will face jail time, though she has yet to set a firm date, reported Scott MacFarlane of CBS News.

MacFarlene said the judge will likely consider a number of factors, including that Hunter Biden is a first-time offender.

Tom Dupree, a former principal deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Department, told CBS News that he does think Biden will be sentenced to prison, but more likely for a year or two, rather than a longer sentence.

Some legal experts have argued that the charges brought against Biden are rare, making the sentencing in the case difficult to predict.

Jessica Levinson, a law professor at Loyola Law School, told CBS News that it’s rare for the charge to be brought as a standalone charge. And she added she doesn’t expect that the president’s son will face the maximum sentence, but that he will likely face time behind bars.

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Ankush Khardori, a former federal prosecutor, wrote in Politico Magazine that gun charges are the “bread and butter” of federal prosecutors, but he explained that “these cases almost always result in convictions, but they usually end in plea deals, not jury verdicts.”

Hunter Biden was set to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax charges under the plea deal, along with a pretrial diversion program on the gun charges.

Though President Biden could theoretically pardon his son, the president said last week that he wouldn’t do so. In an interview with ABC News, President Biden said “yes” when asked whether he had ruled out a pardon for his son. He also said he would accept the verdict in the trial regardless of the outcome.

But the legal proceedings will likely continue, since Biden can appeal, likely raising a defense on Second Amendment grounds, according to MacFarlane in his report.

After the verdict, the president said in a statement that he “will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal.”

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THE Bible said, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”

We are nothing but mere polka dots in this material world. Therefore, we must endeavor to do the following:

1. Love and respect one another regardless of sex, age, economic status, profession, religion, race, educational attainment, political affiliation;
2. Be kind—and extend our patience and understanding—to those who have mental and emotional issues in life;
3. Dismantle our excessive pride and arrogance;
4. Deflate our ego of toxic air;
5. Always give way and sacrifice for our parents, the seniors, the children, and those with physical deformities;
6. Keep our cool all the time especially when truckloads of problems, challenges, provocations ransack our life;
7. Co-exist with nature, respect human and animal rights;
8. Read good books and social media items;
9. Associate with few but quality characters; and
10. Meditate and pray.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two daily newspapers in Iloilo.—Ed)