While it’s good to be the king, it may be better to be a favored prince. When asked about the potential criminal activity of his son Hunter, President Joseph R. Biden Jr. told MSNBC, “First of all, my son has done nothing wrong.” That sentiment is just about the official position of the Department of Justice, too. The agency agreed to let Hunter Biden off on some misdemeanor charges for tax evasion and lying on a federal firearms background check. The DOJ did not announce the decision but instead revealed it in a filing in federal court asking for a hearing to approve the plea.
An Offer He Couldn’t Refuse
Hunter Biden will plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges of “willful failure to pay federal income tax” (for 2017 and 2018) and one count of “possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.” So says a letter sent by U.S. Attorney for Delaware David C. Weiss to the District Court. Dispensing the gun charge, Weiss wrote that it will vanish via a Pretrial Diversion Agreement – that means no time to be served and, later on, if Hunter doesn’t re-offend, no record. As for the tax charges, Weiss’ letter discusses no punishment, but leaks to legacy media outlets by the DOJ say Hunter will not have to serve a single day in custody.
Weiss is a 2018 Trump appointee to his office, where he had worked since 2007 as a top deputy and acting head. These charges result from a five-year-long investigation first publicly revealed by Hunter Biden in December 2020. They have nothing to do with his widely publicized abandoned laptop or its data. Reports state the DOJ undertook this investigation before Bill Barr was nominated to be attorney general in 2018. Hunter Biden is expected to attend a hearing to enter his plea and be sentenced to probation and a lifetime ban on firearms ownership.
Prince Hunter
Hunter Biden (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
The charges against Biden came just one week after his father and Attorney General Merrick Garland arraigned Donald Trump on federal criminal charges. The decision to charge or not, as well as for what crimes and what levels (felonies vs. misdemeanors), is political. There was, however, no explanation from Weiss, Garland, or President Biden for why the DOJ charged Hunter Biden with misdemeanors instead of felonies and why he would not serve a custodial sentence. When news of the plea broke, the main DOJ Twitter account displayed a video profiling an employee who is a member of the “LGBTQI+ community.” Weiss’ office account showed a Juneteenth celebration announcement and a statement on National Gun Violence Awareness Month in a moment of tragicomic irony given Biden’s case.
President Biden’s lawyers piled charges on Donald Trump as deep and high as possible a week ago. Using their prosecutorial discretion, they told the court Trump’s mishandling of classified documents warrants throwing him into a cage for the rest of his life. The former president called the charges against Hunter Biden a “TRAFFIC TICKET” and “SWEETHEART” deal.
Yet again, the Department of Justice has opened itself up to accusations of partisan politics. Congressional Republicans have voiced concerns that under this administration, justice is whatever most benefits the ruling party. Hunter’s immediate legal troubles may well be on the verge of conclusion, but the fallout goes well beyond one man and his own travails; ultimately, the blowback will go all the way to the top.
