When U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika asked Hunter Biden’s attorney if the plea deal he reached with the Department of Justice was “unprecedented,” the lawyer confirmed it was. And, Republicans running for president say, he also confirmed it was the “sweetheart deal” critics claimed it was all along.
Now many of those candidates are calling for a special prosecutor to step in and take the case of President Joe Biden’s son, who allegedly evaded roughly $2.2 million in taxes on $8.3 million in foreign income between 2014 and 2019. The plea deal only charged Hunter Biden with two trivial misdemeanor counts for years 2018 and 2019 and came with the expectation of no jail time.
As Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) has often said on the campaign trail, “If Hunter Biden were a Republican, he’d be in jail by now.”
On Thursday, former N.J. Gov. Chris Christie — who also served as a federal prosecutor — called the current investigation into Hunter Biden a “charade,” noting that it is being overseen by Biden’s attorney general, Merrick Garland.
“The attorney general has to appoint a special counsel tomorrow,” Christie told Fox News. “Get this out of the hands of the Joe Biden Justice Department. Put it in the hands of a special counsel. That’s what should have happened right at the beginning, in my opinion. And it absolutely needs to happen now.”
Vivek Ramaswamy’s New Hampshire campaign noted the entrepreneur and first-time candidate called for a special counsel more than a month ago.
“In June, I called for a special counsel to investigate and publish all findings relating to Hunter Biden and Biden-family business dealings,” Ramaswamy said in a statement to NHJournal. “It’s past time for the FBI and the DOJ to be fully transparent about these political investigations. We, the people, deserve to know.”
It’s not just politicians who want an independent prosecutor. Career IRS agent Joseph Ziegler, one of several whistleblowers who have come forward to call out the Department of Justice, believes it is also time to appoint one.
“I urge Attorney General Merrick Garland to appoint a special counsel so an independent reviewer can examine what I believe were deficient investigative steps and improper decisions,” Zeigler wrote in The Wall Street Journal.
Former President Donald Trump has perhaps taken the issue further than anyone else in the field, posting on social media that Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss “is a coward…who never had the courage to do what everyone knows should have been done. He gave out a traffic ticket instead of a death sentence.”
“TWO TIERS OF JUSTICE!” Trump added.
New Hampshire Institute of Politics executive director Neil Levesque told Fox News the legal quagmire that is pulling in Hunter Biden could also impact Biden, who is struggling in the polls.
“So if you add on any legal difficulties that his son might have that also tarnish the president’s image, it’s not good for him. This is not a good situation for a man who’s weak in the polls and is running for re-election,” Levesque said.
“Every week that goes by where Hunter Biden has more legal troubles, it creates a precarious position” for the president,” Levesque added.
