Hunter Biden portrayed himself as a helpless victim of both addiction and political attacks in a new interview with Axios, and the outlet had no issue helping him spin that narrative.
If you were to read the Monday morning conversation between President Joe Biden’s troubled son and the left-leaning outlet, you might actually be under the impression that Republican lawmakers are attempting to bleed Hunter Biden to death simply because he suffered from addiction.
That’s because the interview portrays the Biden family’s alleged pay-for-play schemes as an afterthought and Hunter Biden as a man whose only mistake was that he became addicted to drugs and alcohol.
The piece is so disingenuous that it reads as if Axios’ Alex Thompson – the man who wrote it – was working on behalf of the president’s son.
Thompson begins the published interview with the following line (links in the original):
“President Biden privately has expressed worry that Republicans’ daily attacks and the criminal prosecution of his son Hunter are taking a toll on his family — and could even lead Hunter to relapse, given the family’s history of struggling with addiction.”
Thompson added Hunter Biden’s continued sobriety is viewed as crucial by him because it could not only save his life but it also could ensure former President Donald Trump “doesn’t return to the Oval Office.”
Hunter Biden actually claimed “the future of democracy” hinges on his ability to remain sober.
The interview is also peppered with quotes from Hunter Biden which play to the sympathies of people who have loved someone with an addiction.
Is the mainstream media biased?
“Most importantly, you have to believe that you’re worth the work, or you’ll never be able to get sober,” Biden told Axios. “But I often do think of the profound consequences of failure here.”
Hunter Biden added:
“Maybe it’s the ultimate test for a recovering addict — I don’t know… I have always been in awe of people who have stayed clean and sober through tragedies and obstacles few people ever face. They are my heroes, my inspiration… I have something much bigger than even myself at stake. We are in the middle of a fight for the future of democracy.”
Who doesn’t love a story of redemption and recovery?
What kind of person would attack an addict who has claimed to have been clean from crack cocaine and alcohol for going on five years?
Only reprobates of the highest magnitude would target a clean-living former addict, which is why this interview is framed around Hunter Biden’s addiction struggles and not his alleged part in an influence-peddling scheme of which his father sat at the top.
Interestingly, the article never gets around to mentioning that poor, misunderstood Hunter has actually been criminally charged with illegally purchasing a handgun while in the throes of addiction.
Instead, it simply refers to court testimony, without explaining why Hunter was testifying in court in the first place.
The outlet and Thompson apparently believe readers are stupid and that Americans are willing to believe Hunter Biden is in the spotlight simply because of his old lifestyle.
The simple fact is Hunter Biden’s face is plastered across news websites, social media and television every day because, among other things, he did a lot of business with foreign countries while his father was the vice president.
People also tend to be interested in high-profile persons who impregnate sex workers and then deny the child is theirs – recognizing their offspring only after a judge orders them to do so, and to pay child support.
Hunter Biden is under legal and public scrutiny because of his own actions, his alleged actions and the fact that he is perhaps the closest person to the leader of the free world.
Had a sober person engaged in practices similar to Hunter Biden’s while his father was the vice president under President Barack Obama, then it would be equally as newsworthy.
For all we know, Joe Biden’s daughter Ashley Biden — who has her own drug history — is now clean and sober and lives a life of virtue.
Ashley Biden generates her share of unflattering news reports, but it’s nothing compared to Hunter — because Ashley Biden, to pull one example out of the air, never sat on the board of a Ukrainian energy company with no experience in Ukrainian energy and while her dad was a heartbeat away from the Oval Office.
Americans no longer trust the media and interviews such as the one Axios published to begin the week are precisely why.
