Hunter Is Finally Going to Have to Answer Up - or Face Possible New Charges
The Biden team has a lot of gall.
The investigations into the Biden family's financial dealings have been going on for some time, and the Biden team has tried to stall and not been forthcoming with documents, according to people like House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY).
Now, with Hunter Biden under subpoena, he's still trying to play games., as we reported. He's scheduled to answer questions in a private deposition before the Committee on Dec. 13. But his legal team is still demanding "conditions" for him to come in, saying he will do it in a public session and not in private, only if there are cameras. Can there be any doubt that they are seeking to put on some performance art? The Republicans were not going for that demand.
But as George Washington Law School professor Jonathan Turley says now, with the subpoena, Hunter will finally have to answer up — or face some real consequences. And his delay may very well hurt him.
The irony is that the long delay in bringing Hunter to this moment could prove his undoing. The committee has waited until it collected a massive amount of data and records on these financial records. It has interviewed witnesses on the influence-peddling operation.
Hunter must now address highly specific questions and evidence under oath. If he is found to have lied, he can be charged with a criminal felony.
The threat of prosecution is real. Hunter has benefited from the Justice Department limiting its investigation and inexplicably allowing the statute of limitations to run on key charges.
False statements on any of these questions could result in new charges and pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland to prosecute. After all, Trump officials were prosecuted for contempt of Congress under Garland.
Turley also laid out the threat to Hunter Biden on Fox. The statement from his lawyer about being a "private person" is hilarious. His whole "business" was using the family name.
"A congressional subpoena is not like an invitation to a debutante ball," Turley explained. "You have to show up." He noted how the Garland DOJ has been very aggressive about going after people for contempt, so they would face questions if they didn't pursue Hunter if he failed to appear. Turley said Hunter had "spent years in denial and delay" but now is going to have to answer some very specific questions based on the evidence that the committee has accumulated.
Turley said Democrats conducted private hearings like this as well, so they can't truly balk about it now. If Hunter tries to pull out his addiction as some sort of defense, he's going to have to explain how he ran such a complicated operation that the GOP is going to lay out, with all the shell companies and millions of dollars coming in.
So Hunter may be in some real peril here and it's going to be fascinating to watch what happens next, so break out the popcorn.
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