Below is my column in the New York Post on how the Justice Department took five years to “resolve” the long-standing problem with Hunter Biden. The effort to “resolve Hunter” has been a concerted effort by the political and legal establishment. It may not however work in light of newly released evidence from the House involving allegations of an effort to delay and deter charges by high-ranking officials. The Justice Department is denying the allegation that Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss was somehow prevented from bringing cases in two other jurisdictions. That should be a simple matter to disprove and the whistleblower could be mistaken or misinformed. However, there are also communications from Hunter Biden (and well as other allegations) that have not been previously disclosed and need to be addressed.
Here is the column:
“Hunter is resolved.”
Those words yesterday from Hunter Biden’s counsel, Chris Clark, were confident and certain. He declared the “five-year investigation” effectively closed even as the Justice Department insisted the investigation is “ongoing.”
If none of this seems to make sense, it is because it doesn’t.
For years, the political and media elite have struggled to “resolve” the disaster that is Hunter. They have finally done so with a long-predicted “controlled demolition” of the scandal by having the president’s son plead guilty to a couple of minor tax violations without a serious threat of jail time.
They even threw in a phantom felony allegation that will evaporate once Hunter completes a diversion program.
The diversion program is particularly insulting to the intelligence of the American people. Hunter is reportedly no longer an addict, having attended treatment and taken up painting. Yet he will be treated like he is a junkie picked up in a drug sweep, and everyone will pretend that this is about addiction rather than corruption.
The Justice Department continues to refuse to confirm what it means by an “ongoing investigation,” but it had often used this claim to refuse to share material with Congress.
There is reason to be suspicious. First, no one can explain why it took five years for the investigation of two minor tax counts and a gun allegation that could have been confirmed in a month.
Indeed, an IRS whistleblower alleged that Hunter was given preferential treatment and that the whistleblower’s team was removed from further work on the case by the Justice Department.
Hunter also never faced any charges after videotaping himself engaged in interstate violations involving a host of prostitutes and drugs. That is now simply material for his scrapbook.
There is a glaring omission of any charge under the Foreign Agents Registration Act despite the Justice Department using this charge freely against associates of former President Donald Trump like Paul Manafort.
However, again, it would not take five years to establish this crime (which was done in little time with Manafort). Hunter seems to have been simply given a pass on what was likely the greatest concern for the White House.
The most notable omission is the failure of any apparent investigation into the expanding scandal surrounding the influence-peddling operation of the Biden family.
Despite the release of evidence by the House Oversight Committee showing potentially millions of dollars in transfers to Biden family members from foreign sources, Attorney General Merrick Garland has blocked any appointment of a special counsel.
This refusal has continued even with references to President Biden as “the big guy” who was supposed to receive a percentage of the deals and the recent disclosure of bribery allegations by a trusted FBI source.
Notably, in his interview, Clark not only declared “the five-year investigation into Hunter … resolved,” he confirmed that he had no recollection of ever being asked about his client’s abandoned laptop by the investigators in Delaware.
If true, the Justice Department succeeded in spending more than five years investigating Hunter while avoiding the two most significant allegations: influence peddling and working as an illegal foreign agent.
It is akin to driving in a bumper car and avoiding any contact at all with another car … for over five years. It takes real skill.
It was clearly a good day for Hunter and the Bidens. At the same time that he was given a pass by the Justice Department, Hunter cut a deal to reduce his child support for his daughter Navy while getting her mother to drop her request for the girl to actually be called a Biden.
It is not clear what is a greater relief for the Biden family: that Hunter will not be known as a felon or Navy will not be known as a Biden.
What is particularly chilling is that the establishment in Washington is not even trying to rebut the widespread view of a two-tiered system of justice. Garland has failed in his pledge to restore trust in the Justice Department, which is now lower than it was under his predecessor, Bill Barr.
The media is again burying stories on the evidence of millions in payments to the Bidens.
In Congress, Rep. Daniel Goldman (D-NY), who has opposed efforts to investigate Biden influence peddling, even praised Hunter for his courage. Goldman said that Hunter “should be commended for taking accountability and accepting responsibility.”
That’s right, Hunter is actually commendable for, after over five years, pleading to two misdemeanors with no likely jail time. For a Biden, that apparently is the very profile of courage.
It simply does not matter that the public now views both the Justice Department and the media as politically compromised. The important thing is President Biden has again declared that he is “proud of my son.”
He should be. No one but a Biden could have avoided any meaningful consequences for the litany of corrupt and criminal allegations against Hunter. It takes a true Biden to do that. Not a Navy, of course. She is not a true Biden.
After all, the 4-year-old just got her clock cleaned in court. No Biden worth the name would ever let that happen.
Jonathan Turley is an attorney and professor at George Washington University Law School.
Jonathan: Trying to invent crimes of Hunter Biden where none exist now seems your only answer to the settlement of all the charges against Joe Biden’s son. So out of thin air you come up “interstate violations involving a host of prostitutes and drugs”? Really? Then you shout about Hunter’s failure to register under FARA. Finally, your fall back unproven allegation of “the influence-peddling operation of the Biden family”. If “influence peddling” was a crime over half of DC would be in prison–including Harlan Crowe/Clarence Thomas and Paul Singer/ Sam Alito! But you don’t seem to be interested in the “influence-peddling operation” inside the Supreme Court. It’s all about the Biden family.
You say the diversion program for Hunter over the drug charge is “particularly insulting to the intelligence of the American people”. How is that? Have you polled the American people? That’s nonsense. Diversionary programs are quite common for first time offenders. The DOJ doesn’t want to spend valuable resources on someone who only used drugs for personal use and was not involved as a drug dealer. David Weiss was not applying a different standard to Hunter. He didn’t give Hunter “preferential treatment” or “a pass”. Besides, David Weiss is a Republican–a Donald Trump appointee. He had 4 years to find other crimes of Hunter Biden and came up empty handed because the evidence did not support any of your allegations. Weiss followed the law and long established DOJ policies. That appears to be your only objection.
You have egg on your face and you are embarrassed that your claims about the “corrupt” Biden family have so far have disappeared into the ether. Perhaps, you should also enter a diversionary program where you could learn the differences between actual facts and conspiracy theories!
@greg_price11
Hunter Biden used his father to pressure his Chinese business partner to send him millions of dollars.
10 days later, he received a payment of $5.1 million from the Chinese to his law firm.
He then moved over $1 million to Joe Biden’s brother’s consulting firm.
Their bank than shut down his account due to suspected money laundering.
These people are the very definition of elitist scum. Feeling anger that hasn’t come up since Nancy’s hair appointment during the dem lockdown. After the anger is sadness. Stop voting dem. Just stop doing it. We WILL have revolutions again, though they may take a different form in the 21st century, across the globe if we cannot pry these people from power.
Much like the citizens of Chicago elected a Mayor weaker on crime than Lightfoot, Democrats across the nation would rather have the endless corruption of DC Dems than vote for a better nation. Without electing Trump, the DoJ will be just as corrupt, or more. It is clear, Barr turned a blind eye to all of this.
Iowa, you’re a smart guy (or gal). Can you explain WHY so many Americans vote for these sacks of crap?
Yes, many do because they have been conditioned to think that any Republican will take away their welfare, Social Security, and Medicare, (all not true), but I know many seemingly intelligent folk who are not on welfare who are committed Democrats. When I ask them WHY their only consistent answer is that they hate Trump and the Bush family. But they still didn’t vote for squishy Republicans like McCain or Romney, so what is it, really?
Maybe because Joe Biden told blacks that Republicans were “gonna put y’all back in chains” and they believed him? Or maybe because Joe Biden told black voters that “you ain’t black” if you don’t vote Democrat? Why blacks can’t see how racist Joe Biden is and has always been is because of the biased media that always skips talking about that part of who Joe Biden “is.”
Generally agree that the brainwashing message is that Democrats ‘giveth’ while Republicans ‘taketh away’ and voters believe it. Democrats moral and good, Republicans racist, evil, white, rich and bad.
Republicans had never moved the needle beyond the stale message “we give a hand up, not a hand out” — until Trump came along and reached out to minorities and broke thru the blue wall with his America First messaging.
I can think of no better term than Professor Turley’s reference to a “controlled demolition.” Perfectly visualized.
While impeachments would probably succeed assuming all R’s agreed, the odds the Senate would convict are slim, although if they’re looking for an opportunity to ditch Biden, it might.
Nevertheless, the process could prove helpful for these reasons:
1) It’s an opportunity to bring some amount of accountability to these bad actors, albeit incomplete, it would restore a LITTLE faith.
2) Discovery. Getting facts on the table for all to see is incredibly important. How could the corporate media ignore impeachment proceedings? It would be tough.
3) Election consequences- if the evidence was clear and irrefutable, any politician running for reelection would really be in a tight spot.
The bottom line is this- if the evidence is so damning for Biden, Garland et al, any and all avenues of accountability simply must be taken to help restore public confidence in our republic- not just that of our citizens but of the world communities.
Justice has finally been served against Poor Little Hunter by the consummate “Protector of all things Biden” AG Merrick Garland. Just great. Rep. Daniel Goldman’s praise of Hunter’s courageous stand is truly laughable. Courage ? Seriously ? There is stolen valor, and then there is heroism by proxy. Thank you, Jonathan, for an excellent article.
Last week was not that long ago, but the left knows nothing of what happened.
Remember all the Republicans that made the similar statements. ‘if these allegations are true, it is very bad. Of course the media asked every single Republican if they could defend Trumps actions. Today, the media asks every single Democrat what their weekend plans might be.
the DOJ like many cities DA are completely comprised. Funded by the likes of Soros…they are LAWLESS!
Democrats Crime Spree continues, Thanks to trillions DONATED by Republicans last week!
DC is lost…that is obvious!
At what point will the stench of corruption become so great that even a Democrat can smell it?
apparently NEVER
Ask the people of German…when they got it…from 1920-1945?
Nothing in Hunter Biden’s DOJ plea deal prevents him from being indicted for violating for state and local crimes. If I were a state or local prosecutor committed to justice, I would focus like laser on Hunter in search of any crimes he committed while he was in my jurisdiction.
Perhaps the Professor can enlighten us on the effect Impeaching a Sitting President has on the Senate’s ability to conduct other business?
Would a long drawn out Impeachment Trial throw a huge roadblock in front of t he Democrat’s ability to conduct other business?
If Biden was impeached…followed by the Vice President….AG Garland, Secretaries Myorkas, Buttigeg, Austin, and just about every other member of Biden’s Cabinet…..that might take us well past the 2024. Election.
Also….if the Republicans would block Military promotions as they are doing already….along with every other nominee…for Judgeships, and other positions….that would cripple the Democrats.
Republicans need to learn to play hardball as the Democrats. have done…..one cannot play the nice guy and win in politics today as there are no nice guys on the Left.
Impeaching this president is a study in fruitless expenditure of energy and money. It already has a predetermined result. Not a single Senate Democrat will vote for an impeachment and it will be, to quote the Bard, “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Better to keep digging and turning over the corpses, and laying them out on the ground for all to see and then use every bit of media you can muster to expose it. Eventually the smell will draw a crowd and people will start to ask questions. Some chinks in the armor of the unimedia have started to appear. Twitter has changed hands and who is to say that Twitter may become a force in the next election.
Every corpse that congress turns over and photographs should be made into campaign literature and given to all Republican candidates. Better to keep it up and in front of the public as long as possible until you can turn it into adds for the 2024 campaign. Then have your attorneys ready to go after every media that tries to block the paid for adds. And they will try.
The GOP was woeful in 2020 for the lack of preparation , attorney wise, for election challenges and monitoring. That will be a battleground again and state and federal district courts will try to overturn the republican efforts at election reform. The overturning of the Democratic Supreme Court in NC in 2022 is a prime example of an effective counterattack. More states and the AG’s should be ready for these last minute attacks. And then also protect your ability to get your attack adds out. That is where the battle will be won or lost.
And keep Trump from giving interviews. He soils himself in some way every time he gives an interview to either friendly or hostile media. The man’s thought process is better described as a flight of ideas.
Impeach Garland….that would be better! Then cut the DOJ funding 75%
GEB,
Agreed.
I do not want to see Biden impeached.
I want to see him lose in 2024, preferably to Kennedy in the DNC primaries.
More than any other president in our country’s history, Joe Biden deserves to be impeached, convicted and serve prison time — along with his son, and his brother. THAT would be justice that begins to ‘heal the nation.’
What will happen instead is no impeachment, no nothing. Joe simply steps aside for Newsom to run in 2024 and he retires with all the bells and whistles and benefits while being lauded as a lifelong public “servant” — one who sold his high office to our enemies around the world. Just disgusting.
Then when Joe dies, the country will have to suffer the agony of watching this filthy corrupt, lying sack of treasonous sh*t, get a presidential funeral with gushing left wing media sycophants, and so-called historians like psychopath Beschloss, slobbering all over his “legacy.” Make us puke.
More than 75% of the country currently shares this opinion about Joe Biden. Democrats, Independents, blacks, whites, women, Republicans. Biden is despised by much of the country. So is his wife, ‘you will call me Dr.’
This president was not elected, he was installed. He and his (Obama’s) policies are disapproved of by most of America.
Do not let the fake news propaganda convice you otherwise.
“Hunter is resolved.”
You gotta give the Left credit for chutzpah.
It gets a kleptocratic family’s shakedown artist to plead to shoplifting. Then it brazenly declares: International bribery? Historic corruption? A politician selling out his country? It’s all been “resolved.”
Yet again, we see the Left’s basic premise:
Facts, evidence, the law, your own two eyes — all be damned. Our wishes are reality.
Congressman Dan Goldman is quickly becoming one of the most obnoxious politicians in DC. It is hard to be that disgusting in such a short time, but I guess with his money anything is possible. He is like Eric Swalwell with money.
This whole event is one of the most egregious coverups in history. How many times have we heard “it’s not the crime, it’s the coverup”, See Nixon, Richard. But now with the media now acting as if objectivity is a passé concept anything is possible. You might think that ONE reporter would either be honest enough or even hungry enough to chase down this story in order to have a 50 year career ala Carl Bernstein, a do nothing “reporter” who made his whole career thanks to an FBI guy taking Nixon down. There isn’t even one man or woman willing to take down the corrupt Biden crime family.
Just a side note, it wouldn’t take a “deep throat” or a great investigative mind to figure out the corruption in front of our faces, it is all right there for the picking.
Sorry, one last point: How obnoxious was it seeing Hunter hobnobbing with the beautiful people and the diplomatic crowd at the STATE DINNER for the president of India last night? Why is the president’s 50 year old son acting as if he is the first lady? Why is he there? Hide the loser, get him off the scene, let us try to forget about him. But no, Biden is so arrogant that he sticks this criminal into a state dinner as if he is a five year old cute child of the president.
I am glad I am old because the country is going down faster than I thought possible. I just need 20 years at most but I don’t think the country has that many years left.
“Why is the president’s 50 year old son acting as if he is the first lady? Why is he there?”
I already said why Biden is flaunting his crime family corruption IN YOUR FACE…
Because this is how the Big Guy thinks: “I’m Joe Biden. I’ve been grifting for 50 years. You can’t touch this. No one f*cks with a Biden. Shove it up yours Ultra MAGA America.”
Joe Biden is a dictator, emphasis on dick.
John N Mitchell, 67th United States Attorney General. was charged and found guilty of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury for his role in slow walking and covering up the Watergate investigation. He went to prison for this in 1975.. Apparently, it is against the law to obstruct justice and to lie under oath and to conspire.
The 86th United States Attorney General should hope and pray that the political climate does not change. He will have some explaining to do.
Kim Strassel in the WSJ has all the stomach turning details
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-hunter-biden-whistle-blows-arrest-doj-irs-firearm-felony-jail-9d114e5f?st=6ibceuex5snrm5w&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
whistle blower will be fired and black balled.
We live in a Fascist State. Ask General Flynn about his clean up Pentagon…before he went to JAIL?
This is why Joe Biden simply laughs at the press and flashes his crooked smile while his staff shoos away the pesky reporters anytime one dares to ask him a question about any of the Biden family corruption allegations. Joe Biden just sits there, like the dictator he is. What a disgrace.
Then to shove it even more in our faces, Jimmy Biden, Hunter Biden, Ashley Biden, the whole corrupt criminal gang were hob knobbing at yet another White House black tie state dinner for Modi of India the same night the Hunter case was ‘closed.’
His reelection campaign ad should be “I’m Joe Biden. I’m a corrupt dictator, a mafioso boss and you can’t touch this. Shove it up yours, Ultra MAGA America”
And Donald Trump will go to prison. Watch them do it.
THIS is Joe Biden’s America. What a disgrace.
Why Black people continue to vote for Democrats, I will never understand.
@Anonymous: re:”Why Black people continue to vote for Democrats, I will never understand.” Those of the Obamaphone generation, who know nothing of the writings of Sowell, Steele, Woodson, Owens and, even if they did, would give a rat’s ass.
Because the Democrats trained them. The inner city plantations like Camden, NJ after 60 years of Democrat rule….5% of high school student are at grade level.
Why do “smart” people vote for criminal democrats? why do journalist willfully ignore reality to install criminal Democrats to STEAL from them?
Wall Street got $9 trillion from the Federal Reserve….to a ONE…Journalists at NYT, CNN, WAPO….LOVE GIVING TO THE RICHEST? Why?
Because 1930 German, USSR, Mao China propaganda works.
The USA is a Fascist State…that is clear. If it isn’t take a drive across upstate NY…with failed town after town….then drive to the Hamptons.
Have Black people been know to be astute selectors of rulers…anywhere on planet earth?
Speaker McCarthy must immediately take a vote in the House of Representatives to impeach Joe Biden, Merrick Garland, Chris Wray, and then DO IT. You know, like the Democrats do. Boom! Impeachment is done! Blink and you might have missed how it all happened so fast. What the hell is the matter with these Republicans?
Oh right. America knows by now, that of course the Republicans will not impeach Biden or Garland or Wray or Mayorkas. They will do NOTHING.
Biden, et al, will be protected, as we have witnessed, because there is only one party in Washington DC. The Uniparty.
And the Uniparty wants Trump and MAGA destroyed. They want Trump in prison. They want MAGA threatened into silence by the corrupt, abusive powers of the FBI, the IRS, the DOJ they will use to bankrupt, imprison and destroy them. They want the America First MAGA movement to go away. Don’t let them get away with it.
The Senate Dems would stand strong and vote no on impeachment. Why make a show of something so obvious?
Wrong. They must do it regardless of not having votes to convict in Senate. They must impeach and then drag Joe Biden’s dirty corrupt laundry thru the public and keep in the media day in and day out from now until the 2024 election. Biden’s high crimes must be exposed regardless of votes to convict.
What do you think Pelosi’s Stalinist show trial J6 kangaroo court was about? Dragging Trump thru the mud before the election.
It is political malpractice if the Republicans fail to impeach Biden, Garland, Wray RIGHT NOW.
and 50 RINOs would obvious VOTE for any Democrats to continue their waves of crime
“Speaker McCarthy must immediately take a vote in the House of Representatives to impeach […]”
As he doesn’t have the votes, impeachments is not on Speakers priority. Lauren Boebert’s (R-CO) attempt will get a healthy rest in the committees.
Hey everybody! Treason is no longer a crime. Vote Democrat!
The belief that the Fat Lady has already sung is likely do to the fact that those who are celebrating having been listening to a different aria. The finale, the one that must yet be heard, will be sung in Nov 2024.
In short:
The former Senator from MBNA was the boss, his son Hunter the capodecina and family members like Hallie and some grandkids beneficiari. From 2017 to 2021, DOJ was lead by Sessions (R) and Barr (R), DOT by Mnuchin (R) GOP lead Senate, the House for first two years of President Trumps Tenure. This only works out because the Republicans have the insurance policy ready. Anyone who wants, knows why.
What did AG Barr do after he was aware of “1023”.? He passed it over to Attorney Scott Brady in Pittsburgh, PA. After eight months of a “thoroughly” investigation, Mr. Brady’s assessment was closed in 8/20. A month later, Senators Grassley and Johnson’s 87 pages report “Hunter Biden, Burisma, and Corruption: The Impact on U.S. Government Policy and Related Concerns.” was released. What was the order of AG Barr?