Special counsel appointment for Hunter Biden probe may weigh on his dad’s 2024 re-election campaign
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US President Joe Biden (left) could be distracted from his re-election campaign by his son Hunter's legal troubles.
PHOTO: NYTIMES
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WASHINGTON – The appointment on Friday of a special counsel his father’s re-election campaign.
Delaware US Attorney David Weiss’ new role as special counsel, announced on Friday, may force President Joe Biden to deal with unpleasant headlines and distract him and his campaign when he would prefer to talk about the economy or signature legislation as he campaigns for the 2024 presidential election, according to senior Democrats.
“This will have a sizeable impact on the (re-election). They run the risk of constantly getting knocked off message. Every time someone goes before a grand jury or is subpoenaed, the press will keep asking about it. Biden wants to talk economy, guns, national security, and he’ll be less able to,” said a senior Democrat.
Democrats also fear that special counsel investigations could grow in scope.
“Special counsels always find things they don’t expect to find. (The probe of former president Bill) Clinton started as an investigation into a real estate deal he and (his wife) Hillary did when he was governor and ended with Monica Lewinsky,” the senior Democrat said.
The Biden campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
Hunter Biden in July pleaded not guilty to charges
Top Democrats were hopeful that a plea agreement between the younger Biden and Mr Weiss would have allowed the President to move past his son’s legal troubles
But a federal judge refused to accept a proposed plea deal, and Mr Weiss said in a court filing on Friday that talks between the two sides have since broken down.
A potential trial raises the possibility of an unprecedented spectacle in US history: The son of a sitting president facing criminal charges while his father campaigns for re-election, likely against Republican Donald Trump, who faces at least three upcoming criminal trials of his own.
Republicans have accused the elder Biden of profiting from his son’s business ventures in Ukraine and China, though they have yet to produce any evidence of wrongdoing. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy said in July that the chamber might launch an impeachment inquiry in the autumn.
Half of Americans believe the younger Biden received preferential treatment from prosecutors who tried to reach a plea deal, a Reuters/Ipsos poll in June found, before the plea deal fell apart. But most Americans said the plea deal did not affect their likelihood of voting for his father in 2024, the poll found. REUTERS
