House Democrats say President Biden’s record is strong enough to pull him through his reelection efforts regardless of Hunter Biden’s mounting legal problems and allegations of influence peddling and bribery.
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York told The Washington Times that President Biden is “going to have a phenomenal story to tell.”
“Illegal border crossings are down. Inflation is coming down, and gas prices are down, so the American people understand when folks are trying to distract the public … because the extreme MAGA Republicans don’t have the ability to talk about the economy.”
Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut said that Hunter Biden has already addressed his problems.
“The courts are moving forward with what they will do. I don’t think it deters the president’s electoral plans or what is his program or where he’s going,” she said. “I don’t think it will get in the way.”
Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California said the only reason Hunter Biden is being targeted is because he is the son of the president.
“I do think that if he were not the president’s son, he might not have been charged with some of those things in the first place,” said the former House speaker.
George Mason University political science professor Jeremy Mayer said the effect of Hunter Biden’s problems on the election depends on his opponent.
“If he runs against a squeaky-clean governor with no family problems, no personal scandals at all … Hunter Biden could hurt Joe Biden at the margins,” he said. “But if he’s running against Trump, he is just as dirty as they come in terms of American politics.”
He said that former President Donald Trump, who now faces a string of federal and state charges, has a long history of courtroom entanglements.
“He has been involved in many lawsuits before he was elected president the first time, thousands of civil lawsuits, both being sued and suing, Hunter Biden won’t matter,” said the professor.
However, the calculus changes dramatically if evidence emerges that the elder Mr. Biden personally was involved in a Hunter Biden scandal.
“If that does merge, the Hunter Biden scandal could matter a lot,” Mr. Mayer said.
It was revealed at a court hearing Wednesday that Hunter Biden could face federal charges for failure to register as a foreign agent when conducting highly profitable business deals with Ukraine, China and other countries where his politically powerful father held sway.
Prosecutors said that an ongoing investigation of the president’s son could include violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act or FARA.
The 1938 law requires special registration with the Justice Department by anyone who works on behalf of a foreign country to influence U.S. policy or public opinion.
Evidence suggests that Hunter Biden used his father’s political position to score lucrative business deals with China, Ukraine, Russia, and perhaps other countries that wanted to influence U.S. policy.
Prosecutors made this known during a federal court proceeding when Hunter Biden was expected to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges in a plea deal that also let him off on a felony gun charge.
The agreement fell apart when U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika questioned the details of the plea deal with federal prosecutors.
Judge Noreika forced prosecutor Leo Wise to acknowledge that the Justice Department is investigating Hunter Biden for other charges, including some related to FARA violations.
The judge ordered new court filings in the case by mid-August.
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