A Senate Democrat extolled President Joe Biden on Sunday for defending his son Hunter who faces an imminent criminal indictment.
Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), who was named a co-chairman of Biden’s re-election campaign, showered praise on the president while dismissing the notion that he will face political consequences for supporting his adult child.
“I frankly admire the fact that President Biden stands by his son,” Coons said, adding that “it doesn’t implicate his leadership as president, and I don’t believe it will have an impact on his re-election.”
“I frankly admire the fact that Pres. Biden stands by his son,” Sen. Chris Coons tells @JonKarl as Hunter Biden faces legal trouble.
“But it doesn’t implicate his leadership as president and I don’t believe it will have an impact on his reelection.” https://t.co/hPpTISPgYd pic.twitter.com/xkX7Be3AHD
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) September 10, 2023
The elder Biden, in an interview with MSNBC that aired in May, spoke highly of his son Hunter despite a years-long criminal investigation.
Biden claimed the inquiry would not affect his presidency because Hunter “has done nothing wrong.” The president also said has “trust” and “faith” in his son.
In the weeks that followed that interview, a plea agreement involving tax evasion and gun charges emerged that could have kept Hunter Biden out of prison. But the agreement — dubbed a “sweetheart plea deal” by Republicans — fell apart under scrutiny by a judge who raised concerns about an immunity clause.
The Department of Justice indicated last week that special counsel David Weiss intends to seek an indictment against Hunter Biden on gun charges by the end of the month, while the First Son’s lawyer argued in a statement that a pre-trial diversion agreement “remains valid and prevents any additional charges from being filed.”
When pressed on Hunter Biden, Coons took the opportunity to mention that former President Donald Trump, who is seeking another term in the White House as the GOP frontrunner, is facing criminal indictments of his own.
“Hunter Biden is not going to be on the election polls — he is not standing for election next November. Donald Trump likely is, and the four different legal matters where Donald Trump has been charged with 83 counts stand in stark contrast,” Coons said.
The senator also said President Biden is “committed to staying out of” the criminal investigation into his son and insisted Hunter “is looking forward to resolving this, to moving forward with his life and his recovery” from drug addiction.