WaPo: Investigators recommended prosecution for Hunter Biden on tax, firearms charges

Screenshots from alleged iCloud

Is this “breaking news”? The only “breaking” aspect of it is the interestingly-timed leak. According to the Washington Post’s sources, federal investigators concluded months ago that they had enough evidence to charge and prosecute Hunter Biden for tax and firearms crimes.

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For some reason, however, the US Attorney in Delaware appears to want more time to consider his decision … assuming this leak is accurate:

Federal agents investigating President Biden’s son Hunter have gathered what they believe is sufficient evidence to charge him with tax crimes and a false statement related to a gun purchase, according to people familiar with the case. The next step is for the U.S. Attorney in Delaware, a Trump administration holdover, to decide on whether to file such charges, these people said. …

Initially, the investigation centered around Hunter Biden’s finances related to overseas business ties and consulting work. Over time, investigators with multiple agencies focused closely on whether he did not report all of his income, and whether he lied on gun purchase paperwork in 2018, according to the people familiar with the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing case.

Agents determined months ago they had assembled a viable criminal case against the younger Biden. But it is ultimately up to prosecutors at the Justice Department, not agents, to decide whether to file charges in cases where prosecutors believe the evidence is strong enough to lead to a likely conviction at trial.

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One has to wonder whether this statement will end up controlling the decision:

I kid, I kid …kinda. One does have to wonder about the “months ago” aspect of this leak, and what motive the leakers might have in raising this now. To some extent, it might be about retribution after mainstream-media and Big Tech platforms conspired to bury Hunter Biden’s scandals almost exactly two years ago before the presidential election. Is it just a coincidence that a matter that has sat for months on the Delaware US Attorney David Weiss’ office is just getting leaked about it now?

Hunter Biden’s legal team certainly doesn’t think so:

Asked about the case, Chris Clark, a lawyer for Hunter Biden, accused investigators of leaking information. “It is a federal felony for a federal agent to leak information about a Grand Jury investigation such as this one,” Clark said in a written statement. “Any agent you cite as a source in your article apparently has committed such a felony. We expect the Department of Justice will diligently investigate and prosecute such bad actors. As is proper and legally required, we believe the prosecutors in this case are diligently and thoroughly weighing not just evidence provided by agents, but also all the other witnesses in this case, including witnesses for the defense. That is the job of the prosecutors. They should not be pressured, rushed, or criticized for doing their job.”

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Translation: They think someone’s “f*****g with a Biden,” and they don’t like it one bit. Of course, we were all very assured when the DoJ leaked like a sieve after the Mar-a-Lago raid that the DoJ doesn’t leak to reporters. Hopefully, that will make Biden’s legal team feel much better about this getting into all the papers.

But frankly, the timing of this leak certainly looks suspicious, as though someone wants to put pressure on the DoJ to act. At the very least, it appears as though someone in the investigation or in Weiss’ office is frustrated with the long decision process. But why would that have surprised anyone involved in this probe enough to leak the details? Some observers expected the DoJ to push this decision off until after the midterms under the guidelines about indictments against politicians in close proximity to elections. Hunter isn’t a candidate and neither is his father, of course, but maybe Weiss — a Trump appointee and holdover — prefers to play it safe rather than make an indictment look political. By this point, no one expected an indictment to drop before the second week of November, if then.

Whatever Weiss decides now, he’s going to be on the losing side in one way or another. Just as with the Mar-a-Lago raid leaks, the leaks around this investigation should raise red flags about a politicized Department of Justice. That doesn’t mean an indictment will be political in this case, but the DoJ and FBI continue to squander what credibility they have left in what now looks like an internecine fight between political camps in organizations that were supposed to remain apolitical in the first place. And that will taint Weiss’ decision no matter how well-justified it might be.

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As for Hunter Biden, well … he’d better be prepared to be effed with on an industrial scale. In five weeks or so, even the media won’t give him a pass again.

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Ed Morrissey 12:40 PM | November 21, 2024
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David Strom 11:20 AM | November 21, 2024
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