Americans Believe President Joe Biden Involved in His Son’s Business Dealings – Nearly two-thirds of Americans now believe that President Joe Biden was involved in his son’s business dealings with Ukraine and China while he served as vice president under President Barack Obama. According to a new CNN poll, conducted by SSRS, 61 percent of American voters said they think that Joe Biden had at least some involvement with his son Hunter Biden’s business dealings.
Moreover, 42 percent said they believed that the senior Joe Biden acted illegally, while 18 percent thought his actions were unethical but not illegal. Thirty-eight percent said they didn’t believe Joe Biden had any involvement in Hunter’s business dealings while he was vice president.
One percent also said that they believed then Vice President Joe Biden was involved in the business dealings with foreign nationals from Ukraine and China, yet also maintained that he did nothing wrong.
President Biden has repeatedly denied having any involvement in his son’s business dealings. To date, Republican lawmakers House Oversight Committee have not presented any direct evidence that the elder Biden personally benefited from his son’s affairs, yet, the investigation into emails and other communications between the father and son continues.
It Ain’t So, Joe Biden
The CNN poll also found that 55 percent of potential voters surveyed said that as president, Joe Biden has acted inappropriately regarding the investigation into his troubled son over potential crimes – while 44 percent said that he has acted appropriately.
The poll was actually conducted before the news broke that special counsel David Weiss now intends to seek an indictment against the president’s son relating to gun charges. That indictment is expected to come by the end of the month – and just before the statute of limitations expires.
Hunter Biden has been accused – and even admitted in his autobiography – of lying on a form to purchase a handgun in October 2018.
A Partisan Divide?
CNN also noted that the views on Biden’s conduct related to his son have largely been divided along partisan lines. Fewer than one-third of Democrats believe the then-vice president had involvement in the business dealers, or that he has acted inappropriately regarding the investigation.
However, a broad majority of Republicans – 76 percent – said they think Joe Biden acted illegally in regards to his son’s business activities; while 90 percent said that President Biden had also behaved inappropriately regarding the investigation.
A majority of independent voters – 64 percent – are of the opinion that the president did have some past involvement in his son’s business dealings, but just 39 percent felt he acted illegally in doing so. About half, 52 percent, also said President Biden has acted inappropriately during the investigation into his son Hunter.
Biden Has Defended His Son
In addition to claiming that he played no part in his son’s business dealings, President Joe Biden has repeatedly defended his son.
“First of all, my son’s done nothing wrong,” President Joe Biden told MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle in June as prosecutors neared the end of their probe, and just before the ill-fated plea deal involving Hunter Biden was announced. “I trust him. I have faith in him. And it impacts my presidency by making me feel proud of him.”
However, as Politico reported in June, several people close to the president portrayed him as having been deeply anxious for months about his son’s legal fortunes and frustrated at the slow pace of the investigation.
The report noted that the elder Biden had “repeatedly barked to confidants that he could not understand why his son was being made to twist in the wind for five years, concerned the legal limbo could create a stress that would trigger his son’s demons, according to those people in the inner circle, who spoke about private matters on condition of anonymity.”
It remains unclear if the president’s anxiety over his son’s legal jeopardy increased again after the plea deal fell apart last month. It is likely only to worsen, as Hunter Biden now faces the prospect of prison time related to his lying on the form to purchase that firearm.
Author Experience and Expertise
A Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.
