Hunter Biden Clashing with His Dad's Administration Over a Key Move as the Walls Close In: Report
Hunter Biden could be on the brink of creating a legal defense fund to deal with his legal bills, according to a new report.
The fund is part of a more aggressive strategy by Hunter Biden and his legal team to face congressional investigations and any potential criminal charges in a far more aggressive manner than in the past, according to Axios.
However, that strategy is not in keeping with what the White House might want, the report noted.
In January, NBC reported that a legal defense fund for Hunter Biden might need to raise $10 million to cover his legal bills.
But the prospect of a legal defense fund that solicits cash for the son of President Joe Biden concerns some.
“For this fund to work, it must be extraordinarily transparent and even restrictive by prohibiting foreign citizens and registered lobbyists from contributing,” Anthony Coley, a former top spokesman for the Justice Department said, according to Axios.
“Without these type of guardrails, the fund will be a legitimate headache for the White House,” he said.
Richard Painter, an ethics lawyer under former President George W. Bush, was cited by Axios as a possible chair for the fund.
“That whole issue is something I’m not commenting on. I get lots of calls from lots of people,” Painter told the news outlet.
Although legal defense funds are not uncommon, as The Washington Post noted, “disclosures around such funds are often opaque, which could raise questions about who is donating and whether, in this case, they are doing so to curry favor with the White House.”
Fox News host Jesse Watters savaged the concept on “The Five” on Friday.
“This is better than the painting scam,” he said, referring to the high prices paid for Hunter Biden’s artwork.
“You set up a legal defense fund, and you can take that money and do anything you want with it,” Watters said. “He can get escorts with it. He can pay child support with it. He can buy a house in Malibu with it.”
“This is just another Hunter Biden scam,” Watters said.
Who’s donating to the Hunter Biden Legal Defense Fund? He needs some smokes.🤡 pic.twitter.com/2Sm040Le0O
— Stan Smith (@stanzo7788) May 5, 2023
The Axios report noted that Hunter Biden has been taking a more aggressive approach to the allegations against him since attorney Abbe Lowell was hired in December.
In January, Lowell, longtime Biden lawyer Bob Bauer, White House senior advisor Anita Dunn, who is Bauer’s spouse, and special counsel Dick Sauber met to discuss strategy.
Speculation has emerged in recent days that charges against Hunter Biden could soon be filed.
Hunter Biden’s attorneys and U.S. Attorney David Weiss of Delaware, the prosecutor investigating Hunter Biden, met last week at the Justice Department’s headquarters, according to The Washington Post.
The Post said the meeting could be significant because a huddle between prosecutors and the subject of an investigation often happens toward the end of an investigation.
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