(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden downplayed a report that federal investigators believe they have enough evidence to charge his son Hunter with tax and gun crimes, saying he “has confidence” in him.
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“I’m confident,” Biden said Tuesday in an interview with CNN, that “what he says and does are consistent with what happens.”
The Washington Post reported, citing anonymous sources, that Hunter Biden purchased a handgun and allegedly filled out a federal form in October 2018 stating that he was not a user of or addicted to drugs.
By his own account in a memoir, the younger Biden was using drugs heavily that year. The tax investigation has focused on whether he did not declare income related to his business ventures, including overseas endeavors that dogged his father’s 2020 presidential campaign, according to the Post.
A lawyer for Hunter Biden, asked by the Post about the case, accused federal agents of leaking information about the inquiry. A decision whether to charge Biden ultimately rests with a US attorney in Delaware who was nominated by former President Donald Trump.
President Biden told CNN he “didn’t know anything” about the situation involving Hunter’s gun purchase but acknowledged his son “wrote about saying no” on the gun form.
“I love him and he’s on the straight and narrow, and he has been for a couple of years now. I’m just so proud of him,” President Biden said.
Any charges against Hunter Biden could ultimately shadow his father’s decision whether to seek a second term. Asked if he will run again in 2024, Biden said he would “be in the process of deciding” after the November midterm elections.
“It’s a matter of, can you do the job? And I believe I can do the job. I’ve been able to do the job,” said Biden, who will turn 80 next month.
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