George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley said Thursday that the indictment of Hunter Biden “shatters” denials made by the Bidens about their business dealings.
Special counsel David Weiss secured a nine-count indictment against Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, for failing to pay over $1 million in taxes from 2016 to 2019 in California Thursday.
“The fact is that this indictment shatters years of denials by the Bidens and frankly, by an enabling media,” Turley told Fox News host Sean Hannity.
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“The fact is that this is a circle that is getting tighter around the president,” Turley told Hannity. “It is clear that the president has lied. He obviously lied during the first campaign when he said he had no knowledge of these dealings. Hunter himself contradicted that. Hunter’s associate said it was utter nonsense in recent statements after his testimony. He also said that his son didn’t make any money in China. That obviously is not true.”
Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and a felony gun charge during a July 26 hearing after a plea bargain announced on June 20 collapsed after United States District Judge Maryellen Noreika questioned the initial plea deal.
“There is a more serious problem here, and that is what the president knew of was not business dealings, it was corruption,” Turley added. “That’s what influence peddling is. The United States has pushed international agreements to stop influence peddling in other countries, the United States believes it’s a leading source of destructive corruption. If the president knew that his family was engaging in that type of corruption, of course it is serious.”
Turley said that the indictment might make things more difficult for President Biden, even though it makes things easier for Hunter Biden. Republican Reps. James Comer of Kentucky and Jim Jordan of Ohio, who respectively chair the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees, threatened to initiate contempt of Congress proceedings if Hunter Biden did not appear for his deposition planned for Dec.13.
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“We are looking at two events next week. One is when Hunter Biden is supposed to appear, that may now be effectively scuttled,” Turley told Hannity. “Hunter may be able to use this to plead the fifth, to refuse to answer questions. But the second event is the expected vote on the impeachment inquiry. This indictment might make it easier for Hunter not to speak, but it may make it more difficult for President Biden to avoid that inquiry.”
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