Incredible revelations hit the news this week in a series of New York Post reports based on data from a water-damaged laptop that Hunter Biden reportedly abandoned last year at a Delaware Mac repair store. The story is still developing but there is enough out there for us to draw some conclusions.
First, maybe most importantly, is the insight we have gained into how children of powerful politicians can use their access and influence to get rich. The expression “influence peddling” seems somehow insufficient when talking about the kind of multi-million-dollar deals Hunter Biden was reportedly arranging.
And there are tantalizing hints that Joe Biden, former vice president and current Democratic presidential nominee, was in on the action. A May 13, 2017, email reportedly sent to Hunter with the subject line “Expectations” discussed a venture with the former Shanghai-based conglomerate CEFC China Energy Co. Hunter, as Chair or Vice Chair, was expected to earn a salary of “850,” probably $850,000 a year. The details of the “remuneration packages” for six people involved in the deal include a breakdown of the equity percentages, including 20% for H (Hunter) and “10 held by H for the big guy.” Was the “big guy” his father? It is unclear, but in an alleged text to his daughter Naomi, Hunter complains about how he gets no respect and says, “I hope you all can do what I did and pay for everything for this entire family for 30 years. It’s really hard, but don’t worry, unlike Pop [Joe Biden] I won’t make you give me half your salary.”
We are also learning much more about the alleged 2016 quid pro quo deal between then-Vice President Joe Biden and Ukraine. Before it was supposition – we had evidence of Hunter Biden’s ties to the Ukrainian energy concern Burisma, his $50,000/month salary as a board member despite no particular knowledge of the energy business or of Ukraine. We had Joe Biden bragging about getting Ukrainian state prosecutor Viktor Shokin fired; he was the official who was looking into allegations of corruption at Burisma. Though Joe denied he ever talked to Hunter about his foreign business dealings, Hunter told the New Yorker that he did. Yet, until this week, mainstream media Biden defenders concluded there was no proof of quid pro quo, no evidence of a connection between the vice president demanding Shokin’s ouster and Hunter’s gravy train…
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