President Joe Biden reportedly implored his younger brother Frank to “watch yourself” in his business practices while he was running for president.
During the campaign, then-presidential candidate Biden took Frank aside and told him to be careful about his business deals because of his relationship to Joe. The president has struggled to answer a series of questions and allegations of corruption surrounding business deals involving multiple members of his family.
“For Christ’s sake, watch yourself,” Joe told Frank in reference to his business dealings, a person familiar with the conversation told Politico. “Don’t get sucked into something that would, first of all, hurt you.”
Frank was caught up in a scandal this week after reports said he was pictured in an advertisement for the law firm he works for touting his connection with President Biden. As The Daily Wire reported:
Frank is not an attorney, but he is listed on the website of the Berman Law Group in Boca Raton as a “senior adviser” to the firm. The president’s sibling touted his connection to the commander-in-chief in an inauguration day ad that appeared in Florida’s Daily Business Review, according to CNBC.
The Jan. 20 advertisement that Frank appeared in publicized a case the law firm is litigating against Florida sugar producers over controlled burns. The ad makes repeated mentions of Frank and Joe’s relationship.
“The two Biden brothers have long held a commitment to pushing environmental issues to the forefront; the president-elect has vowed to rejoin the Paris Agreement and wants to set ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets, for example,” the ad says according to CNBC.
“My brother is a model for how to go about doing this work,” Frank says in the ad. “One of his central tenets is that one should never question another man’s or woman’s motives or assign blame to them. That way, you avoid creating a disparity that prevents any kind of coming together. You can of course question someone’s judgment, and that’s what we’re doing by bringing this to court.” …
Frank denied that he had ever used his connection to Joe to ever drum up business for the law firm.
“I have never used my brother to obtain clients for my firm. Our firm has long been involved [with] this lawsuit. Social justice is something I have been involved in for years,” Frank said in a statement. “I will never be employed by any lobbyist or lobbying firm.”
Aside from Frank, Joe’s older brother James and Joe’s son Hunter have also been implicated in business deals that have sparked allegations of corruption for profiting off of their connection to Joe. At least one deal of Hunter’s has resulted in an FBI investigation, which he announced in December.
“I learned yesterday for the first time that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware advised my legal counsel, also yesterday, that they are investigating my tax affairs,” Hunter said in a statement. “I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors.”