A New York gallery owner has revealed the identity of some of Hunter Biden’s art patrons.
The news website The Messenger reported Tuesday that Georges Bergès, the owner of the New York art gallery that sold the younger Biden’s art, told House impeachment investigators that three of Hunter’s buyers were prominent Democratic donors.
“The buyers, the source said, included Democratic donors Kevin Morris and Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali,” the outlet reported.
“Morris, a Los Angeles lawyer and personal friend of Hunter Biden who reportedly funded the first son’s legal defense, is an art collector who accounted for a majority of the money spent on the art, another source with direct knowledge of the interview said.”
In November, Hirsh Naftali’s niece was among the first American hostages to be released by Hamas as part of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Islamist terror group.
NEW: Hunter Biden’s art dealer told lawmakers on Tuesday that a small group of Democratic donors bought a majority of the value of Hunter’s art, per sources.
The dealer said he did not target donors and he never told Hunter of their identities.https://t.co/zNQkFYE9rz
— Stephen Neukam (@stephen_neukam) January 9, 2024
The first son was aware of who was purchasing his art, leading to the potential of purchasers receiving favorable treatment from the Biden White House, according to The Messenger.
“The first source confirmed that it appears Hunter Biden found out about the buyers on his own, without Bergès revealing the identities,” The Messenger reported.
In a social media post, the Republican-run Oversight Committee called the Hunter Biden art sales an “ethics nightmare.”
🚨 BREAKING 🚨
Today, we interviewed Hunter Biden’s art dealer, Georges Bergès. He revealed how Hunter Biden’s amateur art career is an ethics nightmare.
It turns out, the vast majority of Hunter Biden’s art has been purchased by Democrat donors.
🧵 Below are a few key…
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) January 9, 2024
The interview took place as part of Republican’s impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden and the mounting evidence that he has used his political status to enrich himself and his family.
Remember folks, people paid 80k to 500k for these Hunter Biden works of art….
Say what you will about the Bidens, but they are great at laundering money.
When the Big Guy couldn’t be accessed through Ukraine or China anymore, fine Art took its place.
Where there’s a will… pic.twitter.com/DojmiBwDmh
— Uncommon Sense (@Uncommonsince76) January 10, 2024
However, various Democrats have already rallied to the Biden family’s defense, insisting that Hunter’s art dealings have no relevance to his father’s political position, including Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin.
“Hunter Biden made art that Bergès sold in his gallery, and President Biden had no knowledge of, or role in, these art sales,” Raskin said in a statement to The Messenger. “It’s not illegal to buy and sell abstract art in America.”
Republicans, meanwhile, have made the case that the large sums of money involved means the purchases warrant further scrutiny. Hirsh Naftali alone spent $875,000 on 11 pieces, according to a Business Insider report in July.
Is the Biden family corrupt?
A frequent visitor to the White House — her name appears on White House visitor logs 13 times since December 2021, according to the Washington Free Beacon — Hirsh Naftali has received a presidential appointment to the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad.
“The Biden White House appears to have deceived the American people about facilitating an ethics agreement governing the sale of Hunter Biden’s art,” Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said in a statement, according to the New York Post.
“The vast majority of Hunter Biden’s art has been purchased by Democrat donors, one of whom was appointed by President Biden to a prestigious commission after she purchased Hunter Biden’s art for tens of thousands of dollars shortly after Joe Biden’s inauguration.”
“The White House has a lot of explaining to do about misleading the American people,” Comer added.
