Hunter Biden’s attorney responded on Friday to whistleblower testimony alleging that President Joe Biden’s embattled son had threatened a Chinese official in an effort to extract payment.
Attorney Chris Clark addressed the testimony — released Thursday by Congressional Republicans – which included a WhatsApp text message in which Hunter Biden threatened to wield his father’s influence against the Chinese official if payment was not made in a timely manner.
Clark did not dispute the veracity of the text message but instead claimed that anything the younger Biden might have said was a side effect of “horrible addiction” and therefore could not be interpreted as being connected to his father in any way.
“As his attorney through this entire matter, I can say that any suggestion the investigation was not thorough, or cut corners, or cut my client any slack, is preposterous and deeply irresponsible,” Clark’s statement began, addressing claims that his client had been treated with kid gloves based solely on his last name
“The DOJ investigation covered a period which was a time of turmoil and addiction for my client,” Clark continued, arguing that addiction had fueled Hunter Biden’s actions. “Any verifiable words or actions of my client, in the midst of a horrible addiction, are solely his own and have no connection to anyone in his family.”
Clark concluded by claiming that it was “illegal” and “irresponsible” to make the texts public, arguing that the fact that they had been released by Republicans made them automatically suspect.
“Biased and politically-motivated, selective leaks have plagued this matter for years. They are not only irresponsible, they are illegal,” he said. “A close examination of the document released publicly yesterday by a very biased individual raises serious questions over whether it is what he claims it to be. It is dangerously misleading to make any conclusions or inferences based on this document.”