Trump Ends Secret Service Protection for Hunter and Ashley Biden

Trump revoked the protections for former President Joe Biden’s adult children, citing cost to taxpayers.

Hunter Biden (L) and Ashley Biden attend Maisy Biden's commencement ceremony in Philadelphia on May 15, 2023. Patrick Semansky/AP Photo

President Donald Trump has ordered the termination of Secret Service protections for former President Joe Biden’s two adult children—Ashley Biden and Hunter Biden—citing the large size of their security details and the associated cost to taxpayers.

The move, announced on March 17 in a post on social media, is the latest in a series of terminations ordered by Trump for individuals whose Secret Service protections the president has deemed unnecessary or excessive. Others affected by similar decisions include former national security adviser John Bolton and former White House COVID-19 adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci.

“Hunter Biden has had Secret Service protection for an extended period of time, all paid for by the United States Taxpayer,” Trump wrote in the post. “There are as many as 18 people on this Detail, which is ridiculous!”

Under federal law, former presidents and their spouses receive lifetime Secret Service protection, while their children over the age of 16 lose this security upon the president’s departure from office. However, both Trump and Biden opted to extend their children’s protections for an additional six months beyond their administrations.

In his announcement, Trump also noted that Hunter Biden was vacationing in South Africa, a country that the president criticized for alleged human rights violations.

“Please be advised that, effective immediately, Hunter Biden will no longer receive Secret Service protection. Likewise, Ashley Biden who has 13 agents will be taken off the list,” Trump wrote.

Citing concerns over government-sanctioned land confiscations from farmers in South Africa, Trump previously announced that all U.S. federal funding to the country would be halted. He also stated that farmers fleeing South Africa would be offered refuge in the United States.

Shortly before leaving office, Joe Biden issued a full and unconditional presidential pardon for his son, Hunter Biden, citing what he described as selective and politically motivated prosecution.

Hunter Biden was charged with nine counts of federal tax evasion for failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019. He pleaded guilty to the charges in September 2024 after an earlier plea deal collapsed. He faced up to 17 years in prison and $1.3 million in fines for these crimes.

In a separate case, Hunter Biden was convicted of illegally purchasing a firearm in 2018 while using drugs and lying about his drug use on federal forms. The crimes carried a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.

Joe Biden’s pardon covered both of these cases as well as any federal offenses that Hunter Biden “committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 1, 2014, through December 1, 2024.” With the pardon, he was absolved of all federal crimes and their associated penalties.

The move marked a significant reversal for Joe Biden, who had previously vowed not to use his presidential powers to pardon his son. He defended his decision, stating that the charges against his son were driven by political opponents seeking to harm him ahead of the 2024 election.

“No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can conclude anything other than that he was singled out simply because he is my son—and that is wrong,” Joe Biden said. “Enough is enough.”

Before leaving office, he also granted preemptive pardons to several individuals, including Fauci, retired Gen. Mark Milley, and members of the U.S. House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. Law enforcement officers who testified before the committee were also included in the clemency orders.

Joe Biden argued that the individuals pardoned were at risk of being unfairly targeted by political opponents.

Republican lawmakers have accused the Jan. 6 committee of failing to properly archive documents from their investigation, raising concerns about transparency.

Meanwhile, Trump declared on March 17 that multiple pardons issued by his predecessor, including those for the committee’s members, were “void, vacant, and of no further force or effect” because of alleged issues with how they were signed. Trump alleged that the pardons had been completed using an autopen, a device that replicates a signature, and thus questioned their legitimacy.

“Therefore, those on the Unselect Committee, who destroyed and deleted ALL evidence obtained during their two year Witch Hunt of me, and many other innocent people, should fully understand that they are subject to investigation at the highest level,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.