WASHINGTON — President Biden’s eldest son, Hunter Biden, has been attending White House meetings with his father since returning to the White House on Monday, The Washington Post has seen, as the oldest sitting president in history resists calls from Democratic lawmakers for him to step down.
The scandal-plagued Hunter, 54, who was convicted June 11 of three federal firearms violations and is set to stand a second federal trial on Sept. 5 on a $1.4 million tax evasion charge, has defended his 81-year-old father’s continued bid for a second term amid reports that the Biden family is blaming longtime advisers for the president’s disastrous performance at Thursday’s debate.
“Hunter doesn’t trust his father’s old aides,” a source told The Post. “Hunter wants to be there and the president isn’t going to say no.”
Hunter Biden’s unusual new role in the meeting First reported by NBC NewsThis was confirmed to The Washington Post by two sources with indirect knowledge of the information, citing four sources, who said it was unclear exactly what his role in informing official and political decision-making was.
An NBC source said there had been a reaction among aides of “What the hell is going on?” after the eldest son “popped up” at several meetings and calls.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tried to portray Hunter’s role as fleeting, having only been there on Monday night when he took part in a meeting to prepare for an evening speech about the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity, but a source told The Washington Post that Hunter was seen again in the West Wing of the White House on Tuesday morning.
Hunter Biden said Monday night, [Joe Biden]”I brought him home from a long weekend at Camp David, went with him to prepare for that conference and speech, and spent the evening with his father and family,” Jean-Pierre said, without addressing Hunter’s alleged attendance on Tuesday.
According to multiple reports, the Biden family has blamed the debate debacle on longtime advisers who helped prepare the president, including former White House chief of staff Ron Klain, senior adviser Anita Dunn and personal lawyer Bob Bauer. Including The New York Times and POLITICO.
While Hunter Biden may be able to provide emotional support to his father, his new role threatens to deepen his father’s political quagmire.
During his time as vice president, Biden regularly interacted with Hunter Biden and his brother James Biden’s overseas business partners, including those in China, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Russia and Ukraine, which are now a central focus of the ongoing impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives.
The eldest son is a recovering cocaine addict, which would cause most of the advisers to lose their security clearances and lose their jobs.
Biden fired five staff members who admitted to using marijuana in 2021.
