Since launching their “investigation” into the alleged misdeeds of President Joe Biden’s family members, Republicans have been calling for Hunter Biden to be placed behind closed doors. On Wednesday, it finally happened, but those same Republicans can’t be too happy with the results.
Thanks to the insistence of Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, who did not want the results of this appearance buried with 91 other transcripts that Republicans refused to release, the full transcript of Hunter Biden’s six-hour deposition is now available.
What he shows is by turns hilarious and infuriating. Republicans clearly have no evidence that President Joe Biden ever did anything wrong in connection with his son or his son’s business. Hunter’s testimony only showed the tragedy of his drug experience, how far Republicans were willing to go to indulge conspiracy theories, and how insignificant all of Hunter’s business dealings were compared to something that really worth investigating: the $2 billion reward paid to Jared Kushner. and Ivanka Trump.
Hunter Biden was 2 years old when his father became a senator, and everything he had to say about his professional relationship could be summed up in a response Hunter gave to a question from Rep. Jamie Raskin.
Quotes from transcripts have been lightly edited for readability.
Hunter: There’s one thing that we – that I was fully aware of my whole life, is that my father was an official of the United States government, and there were very clear lines that I respected and that I I was very, very aware. of. And I made sure to never ask my father to do anything on my behalf or on behalf of any of my clients.
Republicans spent much of the day repeating wild claims about Hunter’s business dealings and trying to get him to admit at least some of the connections they have been alleging for months. This never happened. This one response from Hunter has never been seriously challenged.
However, there were some satisfying exchanges, like when Hunter took questions from Rep. Matt Gaetz. Republicans have claimed all along that Hunter Biden had no value to the companies he worked at beyond his last name, and Gaetz went to that point.
Gaetz: What value did you bring to Burisma?
Hunter: I would like, once again, to read my entire CV to you.
Gaetz: No, that’s what you did before Burisma. I mean, when you worked at Burisma –
Hunter: Well, that’s the value I brought to Burisma. The things I’ve done before, my experience, the vast experience I’ve had. I have served on over 13 different boards of directors. I served as chairman of the board of directors of the largest humanitarian organization, supporting the largest humanitarian organization in the world. I was vice chairman of the board of directors of the nation’s largest passenger rail system.
Gaetz: Mr. Biden, I don’t need you to review your resume.
Hunter: You just asked:
Gaetz. The question is: how did you scale this experience for a million dollars a year for Burisma?
Hunter: How did I deploy this experience? By serving on the board transparently and ethically, providing the best advice possible. Just like any other board member at any other company in any other organization, this is how you provide your value. And the value is your experience. The value lies in your ability to then transfer this experience into concrete action.
Like other Republican questioners, Gaetz failed to get a response that would give him ammunition he could use against Joe Biden or any reason for the ridiculous investigation to continue.
But Gaetz received some very special comments as he attempted to spin a ridiculous conspiracy that Hunter was going to provide his father with an office at his company, based entirely on an email in which Hunter expressed a desire to show office space. empty office to his parents. After Hunter pointed out that he never provided Joe Biden with office space, Gaetz swooped in… Or at least he thought he did.
Hunter: My father never took an office with me.
Gaetz. No, but you were considering it in that email.
Hunter: I thought about a lot of things during this time.
Gaetz. And that’s what you see, because earlier you said, “My dad, firewall, had nothing to do with my business,” and now you’re considering giving him the keys to your office for you redeem.
Hunter: How does contemplation happen… Let me ask a question. How is contemplation of something evidence of involvement? I alone contemplate. I think one day you and I will be great friends. Will this ever happen, Mr. Gaetz? I do not think so.
Gaetz also received some very blunt reactions when he asked a question about Hunter’s drug use.
Hunter: Mr. Gaetz, look me in the eye. Do you really think it’s appropriate to ask me?
Gaetz: Absolutely.
Hunter: Of all the people sitting around this table, do you think it’s appropriate to ask me?
Other Republican representatives repeatedly asked Hunter if he had received money from foreign governments, including China, Ukraine and… Romania? To all of these questions, Hunter responded firmly that he had never worked or received a salary from a foreign government. Unlike someone else.
Hunter: The question asked, that you ask, is that my father said that I never received any money from China, from the Chinese government. Unlike Jared Kushner, I have never received money from a foreign government. He –
Hunter was interrupted in his response on this occasion, as he was on a second occasion when he tried to point out that Kushner had visited Saudi Arabia and “raised $2 billion.”
“No no No No No No. Not ‘okay,’ Hunter responded after Rep. Harriet Hageman suggested he took money from Romania. “I’ve never worked for a country. I’m not Jared Kushner. I’ve never taken money from any country. Not a single foreign government has ever given me money, guys – none, zero, not one.
When it came time to ask questions of Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, the exchanges showed how small anything being investigated was compared to what Republicans were refusing to examine.
Swalwell: Did your father ever employ a direct family member in the Oval Office to also work in the Oval Office?
Hunter: To my knowledge, my father never employed any direct family members.
Swalwell: When your father was president, did anyone in the family receive 41 trademarks from China?
Hunter: No.
Swalwell: As president and party leader, did your father ever try to install a daughter-in-law or other family member as party president?
Hunter: No. And I don’t think anyone in my family would be crazy enough to want to be chairman of the DNC.
Swalwell: Was your father ever fined $355 million as an adult by a state in which he worked?
Hunter: No, he didn’t, thank God.
Swallwell: Did anyone in your family ever make a multibillion-dollar deal with the Saudi government while your father was in power?
Hunter: No.
Swalwell: That’s all I have.
A number of moments from the hearing are stunning and others are heartbreaking. Hunter Biden never hesitates to explain the devastating effect his drug addiction had on his life, how he struggled to recover, and how he wanted to make his parents proud. Republicans constantly tried to get him to admit that his drug use made him worthless in order to show that he had no value in the eyes of the companies he dealt with, but Hunter consistently refused to give them what he wanted to.
Ultimately, two statements from Hunter Biden’s opening speech are perhaps the best representation of what this hearing is about, and how despicable it is that this Republican smear campaign has lasted so long.
Hunter: You built your entire partisan house of cards on lies told by people like Gal Luft, Tony Bobulinski, Alexander Smirnov and Jason Galanis. Luft, who is a fugitive, was indicted for his lies and other crimes; Smirnov, who duped you by leading a Russian disinformation campaign against my father, has been indicted for his lies; Bobulinski, who was exposed for the numerous false statements he made; and Galanis, who is serving a 14-year prison sentence for fraud.
Rather than following the facts as they have been laid out before you in bank statements, financial statements, correspondence and other testimony, you continue your frantic search to prove the lies that you and those you rely on continue to peddle. Yes, these are lies.
And finally, Hunter Biden made what may be the most important statement of the day, one that should resonate with all parties.
Hunter: During my battle with addiction, my father was there for me. He helped save my life. His love and support allowed me to get sober, stay sober, and rebuild my life as a father, son, husband, and brother. What he got in exchange for being a loving and supportive parent was a barrage of hate-filled conspiracy theories that spawned this bogus impeachment investigation and continue to fuel relentless personal attacks against him and me.
If the point of the deposition was to make Joe Biden seem like an even better father, the Republicans succeeded.
