Joe's Response To Hunter Biden's Verdict
Today a jury in Delaware returned guilty verdicts on federal felony gun charges against the sitting United States president's son. This is unprecedented in American history. No close relative of any previous sitting president has ever been charged with criminal behavior, so Hunter Biden will go down in the history books as the first.
What I find remarkable in all of this was President Joe Biden's reaction, and how things would be vastly different under Donald Trump. Biden reacted with a heartfelt and saddened statement, and immediately made a trip to Delaware to be with his son. He did not whine about the verdict, he did not immediately issue a pardon to his son, he did not attack or threaten any of the people who brought about this verdict, and he did not fire anyone anywhere as a result of it.
Trump would have done all of those things within hours, if he was ever in the same situation. His whining would be epic and unrelenting. He would be shouting to the skies about the vast unfairness of it all and how he personally had been persecuted like nobody in American history, ever. If Trump ever had a child indicted for a crime, he likely wouldn't even let it go to trial before issuing a pardon -- as he did for plenty of his cronies while in office. Trump would be ripping into everyone involved -- the prosecutor, the judge, the jury, the courtroom staff, and probably the folks who cleaned the courtroom at night, for good measure. He would demand his attorney general fire everyone concerned (if it were a federal case) or prosecute them (for a state-level case) for some imagined crime (of being disloyal to Trump). Is there anyone out there who doesn't believe that all these things would immediately happen?
Of course, it is impossible to really even imagine such a scenario, at least federally. If Trump becomes president again, he will doubtlessly require his attorney general and the F.B.I. to never even investigate any member of his family, much less file charges. Any such investigation would be killed in its infancy, without doubt. If there were ongoing investigations against his children when he entered office, Trump would order them halted. And then he'd go about firing everyone who had participated in any such investigation.
All of this is not really even hypothetical, because it is exactly what Trump is going to do about the federal cases against himself. Unless somehow one of his children got on his bad side, they would be protected from any legal consequences of doing just about anything. If one of his kids had aroused Trump's ire, then they would (of course) be thrown under a bus by Trump. Heck, he might just sic the Justice Department on such a child proactively.
Instead of all this, President Biden released the following statement after the verdict was read:
As I said last week, I am the President, but I am also a Dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery.
As I also said last week, I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that.
In other words, Joe Biden is a decent man who loves his son, but also a person who respects law and order and the judicial system above even paternal love. This will be tested a second time before the election, as Hunter faces a new federal trial on tax evasion charges. If he is found guilty in that case, Joe's reaction will likely be very similar.
Biden has tried his best to restore a sense of decency and ethics to the White House (and to the government at large). Donald Trump overturned so many of the rules of acceptable presidential behavior that Biden had a lot of ground to make up. If he defeats Trump for a second time in November, this renewed decency will continue. But if Trump wins a second term, we can all expect nothing more than vindictiveness and boorishness from the Oval Office. It's not just democracy itself that is on the ballot, but in a very big way decency will be on the ballot as well.
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
It's not just democracy itself that is on the ballot, but in a very big way decency will be on the ballot as well.
Unfortunately and unsurprisingly, those two issues don't seem to be working in favour of a second term for the Biden administration.
And, if two major US-empowered conflicts in the world are still raging in November - one an endless stalemate, at best, and the other an increasingly deadly and destructive blunderbuss - democracy and decency as ballot issues may have lost what meaning they both have left.
Which are you describing as a stalemate, and which as a blunderbuss?
I wouldn't use the word stalemate for either of them. As I've said before (in the context of Ukraine, specifically), a stalemate means that the game is over. The players put away the chess board, or start a new game. Both conflicts are still in full swing.
The invasion of Ukraine is a war of attrition, grinding down Russia's ability to pay the costs of war (in both blood and treasure) and the West's ability to pay attention. Each side is making rapid progress toward its goal of depleting the other's capability.
The dynamics in Israel/Palestine are less clear, at least to me. Every significant question has an answer that is clear, simple, appealing, and wrong. The idea that this is Israel versus Hamas is such an answer.
These guys aren't competing. They're cooperating.
Which are you describing as a stalemate, and which as a blunderbuss?
HaHa!
Dan,
Do you think either situation will have any impact on the outcome of the presidential election this fall?
I don't know. It's been widely reported that the situation in Gaza is contributing to discontent with Biden among young potential voters, Arab-Americans, and progressives. That's expected to cost him a percentage point or two in a number of states, especially Michigan. I don't have any particular insight that would provide independent support for the apparent consensus of pundits, nor any that would provide reason to doubt it.
@dan,
one thing joe doesn't get enough credit for is his understanding of political timing. he knew afghanistan was going to be terrible, and got it out of the way early. my guess is that he has something special planned for the middle east situation, set to drop in september.
If he has a solution, I would prefer that he use it now,rather than letting thousands of people die first in the name of electorally correct timing.
Dan,
I just hope the fact that there may still be two US-empowered conflicts in the world by the time of the election - just generally speaking - won't push enough voters in the battleground states to refrain from voting for Biden and, hence re-elect the former president.
Dan[7],
Not being able to trust what Biden says anymore is one thing. I certainly don't want to believe that he has a solution to end the war in the Middle East but he's waiting for electorally appropriate timing because, THAT would take the cake. Seriously!
I can't believe he would do that. I think the situation Re. the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza is pretty much beyond the control of the Biden administration.
I imagine that, for starters, it is very hard to conduct diplomacy in today's media environment WITHOUT any other aggravating factors. Add to that, successive Israeli government coalitions that have a long record of overreacting when it comes to protecting their security.
Add Bibi's way of doing things on top of all of that and you've got a recipe for chaos when it comes to the Biden administration trying to conjure up a ceasefire with accompanying political solution, notwithstanding all of the problems inherent in said admin.
How does everyone feel about starting up our little Sunday night shindigs again? Saturday night, perhaps?
But if Trump wins a second term, we can all expect nothing more than vindictiveness and boorishness from the Oval Office.
On the other hand, I suspect we can expect a whole lot more than that, including but not limited to:
* A wounded reject
* Lust for adulation
* Destructive behavior
* Anger
* Grifting and greed
* Fomenting of hatred
* Incitement of violence
* Pathological lying
* Extreme narcissism
* Grandiosity
* Constant whining
* Perpetual victimhood
* Babbling incoherence
It's not just democracy itself that is on the ballot, but in a very big way decency will be on the ballot as well.
And if there is but one thing I can confirm beyond all doubt based on recent events: I absolutely will NOT -- under any circumstances whatsoever -- be voting for Hunter Biden... who also will not be on any ballot.
I like presidents who weren't convicted. :)