Below is my column in Fox.com on the Hunter Biden guilty plea. The plea proved vintage Hunter Biden for all of the wrong reasons. The effort to plead guilty without admitting guilt left him looking like the most privileged person since Marie Antoinette. However, it was consistent with a bizarre criminal defense that never seemed connected to a legal strategy. In a twist on the famous tag line from Love Story, Hunter believed that being a Biden “is never having to say you’re guilty.”
Here is the column:
“Guilty.” That word repeated nine times by Hunter Biden in a federal courtroom in California represented something that he had evaded for much of his life: accountability.
Five years ago, Biden had to explain the rule to ABC News reporter Amy Robach, who had the audacity to ask about his history. Biden instructed the TV journalist to “say it nicer.”
The president’s son spent his adult life with his father, his family, political allies, and reporters enabling every corrupt deal and human debauchery. Even at his plea hearing, Biden was closely shadowed by his so-called “sugar brother” Kevin Morris, who bankrolled his lavish lifestyle for years.
This week, Biden was still demanding that even prosecutors “say it nicer” on the eve of his criminal trial. He created chaos at the start of jury selection by announcing that he would plead guilty but demanded an “Alford plea.” The Alford plea allows a defendant to accept that there is sufficient evidence to convict while declining to admit guilt.
Roughly 17 percent of state cases and 5 percent of federal cases end in Alford or no contest pleas. However, as a criminal defense attorney, I have never heard of a defendant seeking an Alford plea without previously discussing the option with prosecutors. These pleas ordinarily require the approval of prosecutors and Justice Department rules require the approval of high-ranking officials or the Attorney General himself.
Prosecutors were gobsmacked by Biden’s sudden announcement and told the judge that they had not been consulted on the demand. Not surprisingly, they were miffed and quickly opposed any such plea.
The result was all too familiar for those of us who have witnessed the chaos of the Hunter Biden defense. After causing a stir, the effort failed and Biden was left standing in the courtroom repeating a standard guilty plea nine times.
It is the continuation of a legal strategy that could be best described as controlled chaos. In 2023, Biden stood with his lawyers in open defiance of a congressional subpoena outside of Congress. He demanded that the House committees meet his demands for appearing as a witness. After all the drama, the effort failed. Facing a criminal contempt sanction, he appeared as demanded by Congress and was later accused of perjury.
It was the same pattern that emerged when Biden secured a sweetheart plea deal that avoided any jail time, avoided a host of federal charges, and gave him sweeping immunity for unnamed offenses. It collapsed in court when the judge asked the prosecutor if he had ever seen such a deal offered to any other defendant. He admitted that he had not.
The response from the Biden team was the same privileged fit. One lawyer told prosecutors to “just rip it up.” Later the Justice Department attorneys stated that they still tried to reach a new plea deal but that Biden gave them the stiff arm.
The result? An unmitigated failure. Biden was convicted on every gun count before a sympathetic jury in the hometown of the Biden family.
This burning train then continued down the track to California where the team insisted that it would make the same addiction defense that failed in Delaware. It then pulled another jump scare with the Alford plea demand.
From the beginning to the end, it is a series of total failures produced by sheer hubris. As I wrote in 2023, Biden ultimately was undone by his entitlement and appetite. He expects everyone from reporters to representatives to prosecutors to “say it nicer.”
At every stage, his bravado and defiance led to the worst possible result. Ironically, he had a prosecutor in David Weiss who fought to help him avoid any prosecution or jail time. Weiss allowed major felonies to expire for now explicable reasons and refused to indict Biden for being an unregistered foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
Yet, somehow, Biden succeeded in forcing Weiss to prosecute him against every apparent inclination to the contrary.
In a statement after his guilty plea, Biden continued to seek to excuse his actions. Just hours after accepting guilt for federal felonies, he insisted that he did it only to protect those he loved: “I will not subject my family to more pain, more invasions of privacy and needless embarrassment.”
It was strikingly belated. Biden could have avoided over a year of such “needless embarrassment” by pleading guilty last year. A plea at the time would likely have secured real benefits for him in sentencing recommendations. Instead, he waited literally until the start of his trial to enter a plea at the very last moment when it offered the least benefit to himself or his family.
Yet, the long road to “guilty” did bring clarity for others as well as Biden. There were no more of the mantras of how my son “has done nothing wrong” or legal experts struggling to rationalize his conduct. He now has over a dozen convicted crimes, including nine related to the millions that he acquired through a massive influence-peddling operation by the Biden family.
There is no way to say that “nicer.”
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”
By the time the pre-sentence investigation report is completed for the judge, Hunter will be pardoned by his dad, Joe Biden.
John Say: This is response to your post yesterday (@3:12) commenting on my posting(@12:51pm). There are a lot of things you got wrong but here is a sampling:
1. Justice Merchan postponed sentencing until after the election because he feared it might have some political effect on the election. DA Bragg had nothing to do with that decision. If you read Bragg’s letter to the court he makes it clear the DA’s office was taking no position on on the issue of sentencing.
2. As to your claim that there is “no conviction of Trump until the Judge sentences” it’s clear you need to go back to whatever are your legal resources. A “conviction” occurs when a criminal defendant either pleads guilty or is found guilty by a jury. That’s happened when DJT was found guilty by the Manhattan jury on May 30 on all 34 criminal counts. You need to refresh yourself on Criminal Law 101 because conviction and sentencing are two different things!
3. And Justice Merchan’s postponement of sentencing was NOT “an admission by Merchan that the case is going down the tubes”. Federal Judge Hellerstein has already ruled twice against DJT in trying to remove his case to federal court. Hellerstein found nothing in DJT’s conviction to warrant removal. That means that if DJT loses the election Merchan will commence with sentencing and DJT can try to appeal to the SC.
4. You also falsely claim in the DC election interference case Jack Smith had to “start over”. Smith filed a superseding indictment based on the same 4 counts–but omitting reference to DJT’s contacts with the DOJ because those might be deemed “official acts”. So Smith clearly did not “start over”! And Bragg and Merchan are NOT “obligated to do exactly the same thing” as you claim. That’s because Bragg already has a CONVICTION. Smith does not.
5. Then you go on and claim “Trump challenged the admission of evidence and testimony of witnesses on immunity grounds FROM THE START”. FALSE. DJT didn’t raise the issue until after the SC handed down its “immunity” decision on 7/1. That issue Merchan was to address on the 16th of this month.
I won’t address the other nonsense in you long screed. The only reason I am responding in detail is to make clear to the readers of your posts is that you know nothing about the law–and less about the facts!
“And Justice Merchan’s postponement of sentencing was NOT “an admission by Merchan that the case is going down the tubes”. Federal Judge Hellerstein has already ruled twice against DJT in trying to remove his case to federal court. Hellerstein found nothing in DJT’s conviction to warrant removal. That means that if DJT loses the election Merchan will commence with sentencing and DJT can try to appeal to the SC.”
But the judge blew off all of Trump’s arguments. That’s going to be a problem at the Second Circuit.
VP Harris hired firm run by Judge Merchan’s daughter: ethics complaint
“The New York judicial conduct code mandates that any judge with a “relative up to and including the sixth degree [who] has a financial interest in the outcome” must recuse from the case. Merchan’s daughter is a relative of the first degree.”
https://justthenews.com/accountability/political-ethics/vp-harris-hired-firm-run-judge-merchans-daughter-ethics-complaint
Ms Merchan has no financial interest in the outcome of this case. Her firm is working for Harris’s campaign, and some portion of that money will presumably end up with her, but that doesn’t give her any interest in the case, because the firm is doing the same work, and thus will be paid exactly the same amount, regardless of how the case turns out.
Dennis McInstupid
What will Trumps date of conviction be if/when he is sentenced?
What will his date of conviction be if merchan decides to override the juriy’s verdict?
Proof that Dennis McIncrier is not, never has been, and never will be an attorney.
I guess that means you never respond when I call out your bull shit because I am never wrong.
A “conviction” occurs when a criminal defendant either pleads guilty or is found guilty by a jury.
That is just not true. It’s not how the law works.
“Kevin Morris, who bankrolled his lavish lifestyle for years.”
Just why did Kevin Morris do this?
Why was Kevin Morris Hunter Biden’s “sugar daddy”?
Is there any explanation for that?
When will Joe Biden be instructed how to respond to his son’s massive admission of guilt? As Joe insists, Hunter is the smartest guy I know —
Really? The Biden political ‘legacy’ is being destroyed, terminally, here in 2024.
How much actual prison time will Hunter Biden be required to do?
If you’re older and Conservative minded, the Biden legacy is that he’s been a grifter, plagiarist and overall moron his entire tenure in politics.
This is true.
Someone please email me when the Hunter Biden blog posts quotient goes down under 1/month instead of 5/week. Used to be a great legal blog for we non lawyers
Yea, we’ll get right on that Dennymous.
JT told me thats never going to change.
Bye.
The prediction markets appear to be leading the polls – regardless even the polls are starting to turn against Harris.
Turns out people actually care about policy.
The upcoming Debate is turning into an event in which Harris is going to need a knockout to stay in the race,
anything is possible – but the odds of that are small. Many are anticipating a different variation on the disastrous debate in June.
Several things appear to be happening:
Vibe oinly gets you so far.
Polls are showing enthusaiasm among democrats is dropping precipitously while Trump after a small dip has recovering enthusiasm.
Trump voters are now several points more likely to vote than Democrats. While a few weeks ago Harris has a small enthusiasm advantage.
Trump core sup[port has been LOCKED and growing slowly for the past 2 years. These people are voting with Certainty.
When you hear people like RFK Jr., Derschowitz, and Shanahan running away from the democratic party – that means FAR more are also doing so.
That alone flips the election to Trump. the half a billion in Zuckerbucks foistering illegal democrat ballot harvesting is NOT coming in 2024.
While Republican legal wins on election integrity are FAR less than they should be – this election willl NOT have as the same oportunities fro Fraud as 2020.
And the scale of the fraud required will be larger.
Trump has been somewhat badly trying to appeal to the center int he past month. This is pissing off SMALL parts of his base – but while they moan, they are NOT going elsewhere.
Trump has waffeled all over on abortion in the past couple of weeks. While looking weak on abortion is a very Untrumpian position – Trump never likes to look weak, at the same time it is killing democrats claims that Trump is going to pass a nationwide abortion ban. While that was NEVER going to happen,
It is becoming clear to Moderates that the abortion issue is going to be decided at the state level – not the federal level. ProLife forces are doing much worse than they had hoped at the state level. That is their problem – The national republican party is NOT going to solve it for them.
ProLife forces have gotten the repeal of Rowe that they wanted – now They must win at the state level.
This appears MOSTLY to be resulting in more rational abortion law nationwide – and also more consistent with the rest of the world.
Abortion will still be an issue in 2024. But this may be the last federal election that is true.
Further it is Harris’ ONLY strong issue and Trump is undermining it
The RFK Jr. deal is again something that is annoying some of Trump’s base. But not enough to change their vote.
Global Warming is dying as a political issue accross the WORLD not just in the US – even the Green party in Germany is backing away from Global Warming.
But environmental and health issues are NOT dying. This is an important shift – because the environmental conservation movement dating all the way back to the 19th century has had as much conservative as progressive support.
My point is NOT that the RFK endorsement suddenly makes Trump the Green candidate – that is still an issue where Democrats are stronger. But it undercuts the claim Trump is a massive environmental threat.
The same is happening with RJK’s “Make America Healthy Again” – that is not all that good a fit for Trump. But at the same Time it highlights the Fact that Democrats are on the wrong side of issues of Big Pharma and health.
Again I do not think People are shifting their vote to Trump because they think he is going to save the environment and improve the health of Americans.
But some people whose opposition to Trump was because of a perception that he was a right wing extremist as seeing this as proof he is NOT.
Trump has NEVER been a right wing extremists.
Trump’s often uncomfortable moves on policies that are NOT part of his core or what his Base wants or cares about, Are at the same time undermining boradly the claim by democrats that he is dangerous.
Trump is very dangerous – but not to their core issues. He will massively dergulate – but he will NOT rape and pillage the environment in doing so.
He is an enemy to the deep state – but not to the values of independent voters. Trump is dangerous to the powerful elites in DC. not to the issues most moderate voters care about.
I beleive Trump’s efforts here have been fumbling. This is not ground he is comfortable on.
But again the purpose is NOT to get the country to Beleive that Trump will LEAD a pro environemnt or Pro health revival.
But that he is NOT stridently hostile – that he is not dangerous to those who value these.
A large part of Democrats attacks have been that Trump is dangerous. But it is never his actual policies that have been the threat – but democrats driven fears in areas that Trump has shown no evidence of caring about.
That has been a big part of Democrats Project 2025 attack. Project 2025 is a 925 page wish list by every faction of conserrvativism in the country.
QWhile on one hand there is something in P2025 for every single conservitive group in the country, on the other there is something that is never going to happen to terrify various small groups of independnets and moderate democrats.
Trump[ has spent the past month – not merely undermining Democrats P2025 assault but their general claim that Trump is dangerous.
Trump is dangerous to democrat elites – and most of the country is not democratic elite and does not care about them.
And this essay says what about Bidens legal case?
Please, stop posting useless essays. You are off-topic and clearly a inarticulate windbag.
John Say,
Well said.
I can definitely get on board with RJK’s “Make America Healthy Again.” And leftists scream exercise, eating healthy is racism.
Kamala attempted to score political points off of the GA school shooting.
She lied and mischaracterized remarks by JD Vance, who called for hardening our schools.
First of all, news flash for Kamala:
SCHOOL SHOOTINGS ARE A FACT OF LIFE. Where the fvck have you been since 1999???
So she says “WE are going to do something about it”. Really, you lying sack of shit? What are you going to do? Universal background checks?? See my earlier post about that nonsense. Notice she didnt say she is coming for the guns.
Kamala has consistently resisted hardening schools.
Instead, Kamala hopes there are some moderates out there who are as stupid as her base, and will believe her implication that JD Vance has a cavalier attitude about massacred children.
I never thought I would say this, i have always prided myself on a live and let live philosophy, but there is a class of americans now that i literally hate. Despise.
Relevance please?