This isn’t appropriate.
First Lady Jill Biden went to bat for Hunter Biden in a new interview, using language the Bidens have thus far been hesitant to use for the troubled son of the family.
“I know that Hunter is innocent,” Jill Biden said of her stepson, speaking in an NBC News interview published Friday.
“Everybody and their brother has investigated Hunter … They keep at it, and at it, and at it.”
The Biden administration’s transition operation confirmed that a Justice Department inquiry into Hunter’s tax affairs was underway after the 2020 election, according to NPR.
This was months after Hunter was implicated in suspicious foreign business deals, drug use and a litany of misconduct through material obtained from the infamous “laptop from hell.“
Joe Biden subsequently pledged not to interfere in the Justice Department’s investigation, according to Senate testimony of Attorney General Merrick Garland.
Jill Biden doesn’t appear to share her husband’s desire to distance himself from the Hunter investigation, taking it upon herself to act as the troubled lawyer’s spokeswoman in Friday’s interview.
First of all, innocence implies an absolute absence of criminal conduct.
Should the entire Biden family go to jail?
Even Hunter Biden’s autobiography paints a picture far removed from innocence — explaining his extensive drug use and even touching upon what federal agents are investigating as an illegal gun purchase.
One might be able to make a (reaching) argument that Hunter Biden isn’t guilty, but innocent isn’t a term that most seasoned criminal defense lawyers would rush to use for him.
Joe Biden has avoided speaking directly as to the Justice Department probe into his son, perhaps realizing that a presidential comment into the matter would amount to a wildly inappropriate conflict of interest.
Biden merely spoke of his feelings for his son when asked about the matter in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper earlier this month.
“I’m proud of my son,” the president said in response to Tapper’s question about the investigation, merely stating his “confidence” in Hunter.
Joe admitted that Hunter had described an illegal gun purchase in his “Beautiful Things” autobiography, praising his son for his candor.
According to some reports, the Justice Department and FBI don’t agree with Jill’s assessment of Hunter Biden’s legal situation.
Authorities believe the evidence in the Hunter Biden investigation is strong enough for criminal charges on an illegal handgun purchase, as well as tax misconduct.
In any event, Jill Biden’s argument for Hunter’s innocence amounts to interference in the Justice Department’s investigation — straight from the White House.
