White House sidesteps question about Biden being dialed into Hunter business meetings
W. James Antle III
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The White House didn’t directly address a question Monday about a report that Hunter Biden put his father on speakerphone to talk to his overseas business partners, reiterating that President Joe Biden has never been in business with his son.
A reporter asked White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre at Monday’s briefing whether the president’s team stood “behind his comment that he’s never been involved and has never even spoken to his son about his business.”
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“The president was never in business with his son,” Jean-Pierre replied.
There was a report on Monday that Hunter Biden dialed his father, then the vice president, into meetings with business partners. The younger Biden has been under scrutiny for his international business dealings, including whether he traded on his father’s name and also whether he reported all the income to the IRS.
Devon Archer, a 48-year-old former business partner of Hunter Biden, is set to sit for a transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee next week.
The panel’s chairman, Rep. James Comer (R-KY), has been investigating Hunter Biden’s business activities and whether the president had any involvement in them.
The White House has generally avoided answering questions about the younger Biden, saying he does not work for the administration or referring those inquiries to the Justice Department.
Hunter Biden is set to appear in court this week for a hearing on his plea agreement. He has been under federal investigation.
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“Anything that’s related to Hunter Biden, we always, as you’ve heard us say, refer you to his representatives,” Jean-Pierre told reporters in February. “I’m just not going to get into it here.”
Congress has heard from two IRS whistleblowers who allege Hunter Biden was not treated normally during a federal investigation into his taxes and business dealings.