The Tribune

With CHARLIE HARPER

LET’S talk a bit this morning about Hunter Biden. He’s been in the news again recently, as a reported plea deal collapsed that would have indemnified him against future prosecution. The Justice Department has appointed the US Attorney for Delaware, David Weiss, as a special counsel to now pursue the legal investigation of Hunter Biden.

But before we start, it is useful to note that this is virtually the only ongoing ethics scandal besmirching the current Biden administration.

Thus, it is easy to understand why the Republican Party continues to try to transform the sad drama of this troubled president’s son into a symbolic rallying point in their tireless quest to normalise the pervasive corruption, incompetence and disregard for the offices they held of former president Donald Trump and so many of his cabinet appointees.

Remember, for example, Ryan Zinke? Secretary of the Interior under Trump, he now serves again as a member of the House of Representatives from Montana. He previously served in the House before Trump appointed him to Interior in 2017. Even in a presidential cabinet dotted with knaves – as well as some few distinguished public servants – Zinke stood out as a special case. He lasted until 2019, when his misbehaviour convinced Trump and those around him that he had become too much of a liability.

Zinke looked good superficially to the casual background checkers in Trump’s initial personnel department. An Air Force Academy graduate and Navy Seal, he seemed a fine cabinet choice. But he treated his office as a sinecure.

The Interior Department’s own Inspector General’s report on his conduct concluded that Zinke had repeatedly violated ethical rules and then lied to investigators. His tenure as Secretary of the Interior was plagued by scandals, including his insistence that special flagpoles be erected so that flags could be raised or lowered when he was in residence, spending over $200,000 of taxpayer money to do so.

You get the idea.

Anyhow, the list is impressive of Trump cabinet members who resigned or were forced from office due to various types of ethical and financial misbehaviour. Here is a compilation of only some of the most egregious cases.

Former Texas governor Rick Perry, forced out from the Department of Energy over reports of financial misdeeds involving Ukraine dealings.

Former Miami-based US Attorney Alexander Acosta, resigned as Secretary of Labour after reports emerged of a too favorable deal offered to an alleged sex trafficker.

Former Alabama senator and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, forced out because he recused himself from Robert Mueller’s Russian influence probe and thus could not fire Mueller at Trump’s request.

Scott Pruitt, left as Environmental Protection administrator over numerous reports of misuse of government funds and perquisites.

Two different prominent male White House advisors, resigned over allegations of domestic violence.

Former Georgia congressman Tom Price, forced out after too many reports of using government jets for personal business.

Former General Mike Flynn, dismissed as national security adviser after reportedly lying to the FBI about Russian influence in the White House, and now a purveyor of fantastic conspiracy theories.

There are plenty of other examples, including several distinguished former generals who resigned from the Defence Department and National Security Council over policy and stylistic differences with Trump.

In contrast, during the first nearly three years of his own first term Joe Biden has, according to Bloomberg News, achieved the lowest turnover rate in his cabinet and among his senior White House staffers in the last 40 years, since before Ronald Reagan took office in 1981. His only cabinet loss has been Labour Secretary Marty Walsh, a former Boston mayor who resigned to take a more secure, better paying job as executive director of the NHL players association.

So senior official scandal has not so far tainted the current administration.

But while we are speaking of scandal, we return to the president’s only remaining son, the notorious Hunter Biden. And right up front, it must be conceded that this man has often behaved terribly, immorally and probably corruptly.

Having confessed to drugs and alcohol addictions in the past, the superficially dashing Hunter ditched his wife and the mother of his children to take up with the widow of his much more distinguished brother Beau, who was as admirable as Hunter is despicable. Then, after a painfully short period, Hunter dumped the widow, thus disrupting two different families.

Allegations of various corruptions have followed Hunter for years, even though little attention was paid to him in the immediate aftermath of his father’s 2020 election.

It seemed that many national political reporters initially found the public discussion of Hunter Biden to be uninteresting. It appeared to be typical partisan noise. But eventually, some pundits came to believe the story was more important. “Many rich and famous people try to cash in on their family name, including relatives of the politicians,” one said. “It’s certainly worth newspaper coverage.”

Some clients believed Hunter could deliver foreign support for corporate corruption and greed. Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, put Hunter on its board, in an attempt to signal that it was pro-Western and get greater access to Western investment. A Chinese tycoon also reportedly signed a partnership with him. Altogether, Hunter is reported to have made more than $800,000 in 2013 and more than $1.2m in 2014.

There is evidently truth to Republican claims to Hunter Biden’s misdeeds. Some observers feel, though, that GOP statements about him have reached hyperbolic levels and often lack any factual support. House Republicans have claimed that the elder Biden himself received money as part of Hunter’s business dealings; according to press reports, they have produced no evidence to support the claim. There appears to be no evidence that Joe Biden altered administration policy to benefit Hunter’s clients.

The new special counsel, David Weiss, has now filed a document in the Hunter Biden case saying that negotiations over a guilty plea deal have collapsed and now he moves forward with his independent investigation. Weiss wrote that the premise that the parties intended to continue toward a guilty plea “is no longer the case” and “parties are at an impasse”.

In a related filing, Weiss has asked to dismiss the tax charges from the district court for Delaware and indicated that Hunter Biden will likely face charges and a criminal trial either in California or the District of Columbia, where the relevant acts occurred. As part of the plea deal that fell apart, Mr Biden had agreed to plead guilty in Delaware and waive his right to challenge the venue. “The government now believes that the case will not resolve short of a trial,” Mr Weiss wrote.

There is thus some symmetry between the multi-jurisdictional legal jeopardy faced by young Biden and Trump himself. But there seems to be two important distinctions. First, Hunter Biden isn’t a current candidate for any office, let alone the president of the United States. And secondly, he isn’t accused of seditious attempts to overthrow the American constitution. Trump actually is accused of these crimes.

Under Justice Department rules, a special counsel like Weiss operates with day-to-day independence from the normal channels of supervision. The attorney general cannot remove Weiss except for cause, like misconduct, and can block a significant investigative step — like charging someone — only if the attorney general concludes it would be “so inappropriate or unwarranted under established departmental practices that it should not be pursued.”

It seems that we will eventually see indictments, a trial and perhaps conviction and incarceration for the current president’s son. What if we also saw that same sequence for the current president’s predecessor?

America continues support for Ukraine Russia conflict

As if to remove lingering doubts about the American will to continue the fight in Ukraine, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said this on Monday: “Today we are announcing the next package of security assistance to aid Ukraine as it defends its territory and protects its people. This package includes air defence munitions, artillery rounds, anti-armour capabilities, and additional mine-clearing equipment.

“Every day, Russia is killing Ukrainian civilians and destroying civil infrastructure, while also weaponising hunger and contributing to global food insecurity through its destruction of Ukraine’s civilian ports and grain infrastructure. Until (Russia stops the war), the United States and our allies and partners will stand united with Ukraine, for as long as it takes.”