President Joe Biden said ‘I’m proud of my son’ hours after his eldest child Hunter reached a plea deal in his tax and gun case (Pictures: AP)
President Joe Biden smiled and said he’s ‘very proud’ of his eldest son Hunter Biden, who reached a deal to plead guilty to federal tax charges and a gun charge.
The president was barraged with questions on Hunter after providing a brief introduction in an artificial intelligence meeting with civil society leaders on Tuesday afternoon.
‘Mr President, have you spoken to your son today?’ a reporter could be heard shouting in the live stream. ‘Mr President, any reaction to the guilty plea?’
The president flashed a wide smile and looked around the room with his hands folded.
Eventually, he said: ‘I’m very proud of my son.’
The president continued to look around and ignore journalists’ questions, as the video faded out.
After his prepared comments, the president said, ‘So I’d like to ask the press to leave the room, thank you for coming in.’
The meeting on artificial intelligence with eight technology leaders in San Francisco, California, was closed to the media and public following the introduction.
Hours earlier, in the morning, the Justice Department in court filings revealed that Hunter, 53, would plead guilty to two tax misdemeanors and struck a deal with prosecutors to settle a felony gun charge.
Hunter received more than $1.5million in taxable income in 2017 and 2018 and did not pay incoming tax even though he owed over $100,000 from those years, according to the filings.
He was also charged with owning a firearm unlawfully in October 2018 while using and being addicted to a controlled substance, the filings state. Hunter entered a pretrial diversion agreement for the gun charge, which allows defendants to avoid a criminal conviction or time behind bars.
Shortly after the plea deal was announced, White House spokesman Ian Sams stated only: ‘The President and First Lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life. We will have no further comment.’
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President Joe Biden’s son Hunter pleaded guilty to federal tax charges and struck a deal on gun charge.