The Untold Truth Of Joe Biden's Son Hunter
Joe Biden recently secured a spot as a frontrunner in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, upping his chances at winning the Oval Office in November 2020. The former vice president came out on top in a national poll released March 6 with a 16-point lead above Bernie Sanders, a Vermont senator also vying to be the Democratic nominee.
This isn't the first time the 77-year-old is making headlines as a potential presidential candidate. Not only has Biden run for president a few times in the past, but he's also long been in the spotlight as one of America's all-time political icons. His slow rise to fame after being a Delaware senator for more than three decades, his support for former President Barack Obama as vice president during a historic administration, and his touching backstory as a widowed husband have all made him one of America's more well-known figures.
But there's another part of Biden that makes him so recognizable to the American public — his family values. Particularly, his relationship with his sons, Beau and Hunter Biden. While Beau, the eldest of Biden's four children, hit headlines after losing his battle with cancer, Hunter has mostly gone under the radar. Even so, he's definitely found himself involved in his fair share of scandals and drama over the years.
Here's everything you need to know about Hunter:
A probe into Hunter Biden at President Trump's request
Recently, the left-leaning lawyer and lobbyist has caught flack from politicians on the opposite side of the aisle. According to Politico, the Senate Homeland Security Committee intends to investigate Hunter Biden's work ties to Ukraine after a pivotal vote from Sen. Mitt Romney.
NPR reported the investigation comes after Hunter made bank during his father's time as vice president. Hunter was a paid member of the board for the Ukrainian gas company Burisma and even reportedly received gifts from Chinese business players. Some, including Romney, had concerns that this probe could be politically motivated, as Hunter's father's promising comeback could threaten President Trump, who's seeking a second term.
Trump reportedly asked Ukraine's president during a phone call to "look into" Hunter along with his father, which is one of the things that led to Trump's impeachment, per CNBC. "There's a lot of talk about Biden's son, that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that, so whatever you can do with the attorney general would be great," Trump said in the call.
Hunter, who denied ethical wrongdoing but admitted to poor judgment, told ABC News in October 2019, "Being the subject of Donald Trump's ire is a feather in my cap. It's not something that I go to bed nervous about at night at all. The reason I'm able to do that is because I am absolutely enveloped in love of my family."
Hunter Biden found himself involved in a paternity lawsuit
You'd think a target on your back from the president of the United States would be enough controversy. But in what is potentially equally stressful, Hunter Biden also has some baby-related drama as of late. A former stripper from Arkansas is coming after Hunter in court over a paternity lawsuit, according to Page Six.
The former vice president's son dodged claims that he was the father until a DNA test proved otherwise, and he recently requested a judge on the case to delay his child support deposition until April, which the judge denied. According to a separate Page Six report, Lunden Alexis Roberts was a stripper at a Washington, D.C. club Hunter frequented around the time he was dating his older brother's widow. Now, she wants him to pay up for the toddler, whose DNA the test found matched Hunter's "with near scientific certainty."
After unsuccessful attempts to delay the case and not showing up in court, an Arkansas judge has ordered Hunter to appear unless "his hair is on fire." "It's not good enough for him to just say, 'I'm not available,'" judge Holly Meyer said during a conference call in late February, per the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. "I need to know why he's not available or where he is or what could possibly be more important than what's going in this case."
Hunter Biden has been open about battling addiction
Hunter Biden's scandals don't end there. Per Page Six, he's also been accused of smoking crack in a VIP room of another DC strip club, located just a few blocks from the White House. "There was a smell of burning Styrofoam in the VIP room. We told him nothing illegal can go on here," the club's former managing partner claimed in 2018. Although workers "didn't see anything illegal," they suspected it was crack. Hunter's personal lawyer didn't return Page Six's request for comment.
The lobbyist has a history of drug and alcohol abuse, dating back to his college years at Georgetown and including getting discharged from the Navy after testing positive for cocaine, according to The New Yorker. He opened up to the magazine about stints of sobriety, relapses, and more hard times. Hunter said, "Look, everybody faces pain. Everybody has trauma. There's addiction in every family. I was in that darkness. I was in that tunnel—it's a never-ending tunnel. You don't get rid of it. You figure out how to deal with it."
Regarding his controversies, Hunter told ABC News, "My dad doesn't have to defend me. My dad only has to love me. And my dad loves me unequivocally." He added that his father, Joe Biden, knows he's his "own man" and "strong enough" to get through anything.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with substance abuse, you can contact SAMHSA's free, confidential helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).