Left: President Joe Biden talks with his son Hunter Biden as he arrives at Delaware Air National Guard Base in New Castle, Del., Tuesday, June 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta). Right: Former President Donald Trump waits for the start of proceedings in his trial at Manhattan criminal court, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle, Pool)
A Delaware jury comprised of six men and six women took approximately three hours to deliberate before finding Hunter Biden guilty on three felony charges relating to his purchase of a handgun in 2018. He is the first child of a sitting president to be convicted on criminal charges.
Biden was charged with making false statements about the purchase of the gun and information required by a federally licensed gun dealer, as well as possession of a gun by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.
The guilty verdict was delivered hours before President Joe Biden was scheduled to share remarks on gun control and a few weeks before his upcoming presidential debate with another recently convicted felon with presidential ties, Donald Trump.
President Biden has said he will not issue a pardon for his son and stated, “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.”
Hunter Biden will face sentencing in the next few months and faces a maximum prison sentence of 25 years, though many speculate he’s more likely to receive two years at most. However, that’s not where the president’s son’s legal troubles end.
He also faces another criminal charge for allegedly failing to pay over a million dollars in taxes on time. This trial is set in Los Angeles and is currently scheduled for September of this year. Whether this latest conviction and upcoming court appearance will have an impact on the election remains to be seen.
Tracking voter actions from now to November
According to a new election forecasting tool launched by ABC News’ data journalism organization, 538, voters can track predicted election outcomes.
The tool is designed to update predictions based on newly approved polls and other key indicators. In its initial forecast, it revealed President Biden was locked in a very close race with former President Trump.
Is the country really facing the decision of whether voting for a convicted presidential candidate is worse than voting for a president whose son is a convicted felon?
Republicans are taking Hunter Biden’s conviction as a chance to shift focus to unfounded claims of alleged criminal foreign business dealings of President Biden. The Trump campaign’s national press secretary released a statement saying, “This trial has been nothing more than a distraction from the real crimes of the Biden Crime Family, which has raked in tens of millions of dollars from China, Russia, and Ukraine.”
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, echoed this sentiment with his own unfounded claims stating, “Today’s verdict is a step toward accountability, but until the Department of Justice investigates everyone involved in the Bidens’ corrupt influence peddling schemes that generated over $18 million in foreign payments to the Biden family, it will be clear department officials continue to cover for the Big Guy, Joe Biden.”
Comer currently leads the GOP’s stalled impeachment inquiry into President Biden.
However, Democrats point out that the felony gun conviction shows there isn’t a double standard at the Department of Justice and takes away from Trump’s campaign credibility in waving their own conviction.
Meanwhile, the American people are gearing up for the Biden-Trump presidential campaign debate. On the docket is a discussion of whether either candidate is fit to fulfill the role of president.
The first presidential debate — and what’s on the line for voters
As one of the two oldest candidates to ever run for the U.S. presidency, Trump is accusing Biden of being physically and mentally unfit, though Trump is only three years younger. Meanwhile, Biden has called Trump “unhinged” and a danger to democracy, as Trump continues to accuse Democrats of weaponizing the justice system against him.
Despite the typical mudslinging from both camps, voters must also keep in mind what’s at stake as they gear up for the election in November. With Trump comes a Supreme Court, one that’s already overturned Roe v. Wade (5-4), and in the next four years, the president could appoint two justices to the Supreme Court.
Whoever wins the 2024 presidential election may appoint at least one Supreme Court justice, which could impact the current 6-3 conservative majority.
Though the Supreme Court recently struck down an attempt by conservative doctors to prevent access to a widely used abortion pill, Justice Clarence Thomas submitted a concurrence to the unanimous Supreme Court decisions suggesting other ways abortion opponents could bring legal challenges.
Additionally, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote, “The plaintiffs may present their concerns and objections to the President and FDA in the regulatory process, or to Congress and the President in the legislative process. And they may also express their views about abortion and mifepristone to fellow citizens, including in the political and electoral processes.”
The summer has barely started, and Donald Trump’s and Hunter Biden’s respective court cases have taken center stage versus what’s on the political docket. It’ll be interesting to see what both campaigns have up their sleeves in the coming months as people will be heading to the voting booth sooner than it seems.
Kelly Hyman is a TV legal analyst who has appeared on Fox News, CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, CourtTV, BBC, MSNBC and is the host of the popular true-crime podcast, “Once Upon a Crime in Hollywood.”
This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.
