(Daily Mail) Hunter Biden is feeling ‘dark, gloomy and defeated’ in the wake of his gun indictment – and in ‘despair’ over his soaring legal fees, a source close to him has claimed.
The first son faces up to 25 years in prison after being indicted on three felony charges for lying about his crack cocaine addiction when buying a gun.
CNN’s Paula Reid spoke about how deflated those closest to Hunter were at the announcement.
I got the sense that it’s just pretty dark and gloomy over there, they feel defeated,’ Reid said.
Hunter has not been discussing the case or the potential charges with his father, President Joe Biden, despite the two remaining in touch.
A reporter citing sources in Hunter Biden’s camp the past few days described a dark, gloomy, defeated mood after the First Son was indicted on federal gun charges Thursday
‘He’s actually still very close to his dad, they talk frequently but they don’t talk about this. Hunter doesn’t want to burden his father with it.’
She claims that things have been low in the Biden camp ever since a judge refused a plea deal for the president’s son.
‘They really thought they were gonna be successful. Even when it first fell apart they felt the judge would ultimately approve it.’
In a sensational development, the First Son will have to appear in court after a Delaware grand jury returned three charges against him, including two counts of false statements on his gun forms, and one of possessing a firearm while addicted to illicit drugs.
Reid then told CNN over the ‘millions and millions’ of dollars of legal debt Hunter faces from this case, causing him ‘quite a bit of despair.’
‘It’s very difficult for him to find employment right now or raise money so these charges today, they came as news to his team.’
Reid made no mention of Hunter’s burgeoning art career, which sees him charge up to $500,000 for a painting. That endeavor has in itself sparked cash-for-access fears.
Proving that, Reid said Biden has not scheduled an appearance or a time to turn himself in.
The White House is not commenting on the new felony charges for the president’s son, and Biden joked he would get in ‘trouble’ if he answered press questions at the end of an economics speech later Thursday.
CNN’s Paula Reid spoke about how deflated those closest to Hunter were at the announcement
Hunter has not been discussing the case or the potential charges with his father, President Joe Biden, despite the two remaining in touch
It is a shattering blow for President Joe Biden who has stood by his son and is running for reelection in 2024.
The move by Special Counsel Davis Weiss is a significant escalation in his investigation into the president’s son for gun and tax crimes, which is still ongoing.
It also comes the same week that Republicans in the House opened a formal impeachment inquiry into President Biden for his alleged connections to Hunter’s business dealings and is likely to have a long-term impact on his political career.
Republicans allege that Hunter is guilty of even more felonies and that Weiss’ indictment on just the gun charges is insufficient.
The maximum time in prison would be 25 years total if he is convicted on all of the counts, although federal sentences are usually less than the maximum. Hunter could also be slapped with a max $250,000 fine and three years probation.
According to the indictment, Hunter lied about his drug use when he purchased a gun in 2018.
The First Son purchased a 0.38 Colt Cobra caliber pistol in Delaware, a state that makes any buyer answer a series of questions before they can lay their hands on a weapon.
One from the 2018 application asks if the applicant uses or is addicted to drugs. The box is clearly checked ‘no.’
Biden joked he would get in ‘trouble’ if he answered press questions at the end of an economics speech later Thursday in Maryland
President Biden’s son Hunter was indicted by Special Counsel David Weiss on federal felony gun charges Thursday
Hunter allegedly lied on a firearm report (above) required for his gun transaction. A photo of the form shows he answered ‘no’ when asked if he was an ‘unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance’
Hunter has admitted that he was addicted to crack cocaine at the time of the gun purchase.
Video discovered on Hunter’s laptop computer shows him naked and brandishing a handgun in a hotel room in 2018, allegedly five days after buying the gun.
About two weeks later his lover and brother’s widow Hallie Biden found it ‘unlocked’ in his truck and threw it in a grocery store trash can. Its discovery sparked a police investigation.
In addition, now-President Biden sounded close to tears in the voicemail left on Hunter’s abandoned laptop on October 15 – three days after Hunter bought the gun and lied about being a drug addict – begging him to get help.
‘It’s Dad. I called to tell you I love you. I love you more than the whole world pal,’ Joe said in the October 15 message. ‘You gotta get some help. I know you don’t know what to do, I don’t either.’
On July 27, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre ruled out President Biden issuing a pardon for Hunter. But it remains to be seen if the White House’s posture has changed now that Hunter faces the three new felony charges.
Republicans are insisting that Joe’s son is guilty of even more felonies and that Weiss’ indictment on gun charges should just be the tip of the spear.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., who is leading an investigation into the Biden family’s business dealings, reacted to the indictment saying the charges are a ‘very small start.’
‘Unless U.S. Attorney Weiss investigates everyone involved in the fraud schemes and influence peddling, it will be clear President Biden’s DOJ is protecting Hunter Biden and the big guy,’ he continued.
‘Ironically, that’s the one crime that he committed that you cannot tie Joe Biden to,’ added Comer.
Republican firebrand Rep. Matt Gaetz said in reaction: ‘Getting Hunter on the gun charge is like getting Jeffrey Dahmer on littering.’
The White House is referring inquiries on the new charges to the Justice Department, saying that it is an independent investigation.
Earlier this summer, the president’s son had reached a deal after the five-year investigation that would have allowed him to avoid trial for the firearms charges if he abided by parole conditions over 24 months.
Republicans in Washington complained that the president’s son had gotten himself a ‘sweetheart deal’ designed to protect President Biden.
However, the plea deal spectacularly fell apart in court in July, opening Hunter up to new charges.
Judge Maryellen Noreika questioned the ‘diversion agreement’ of Hunter’s plea deal – a clause that gave him blanket immunity for a wide range of other potential charges, including illegal foreign lobbying – killing the deal.
In August, Attorney General Merrick Garland elevated Weiss to special counsel status after increased scrutiny.
Garland’s decision to promote Weiss came after IRS whistleblower allegations that Hunter received ‘special treatment’ during the criminal probe.
IRS agents Joe Ziegler and Gary Shapley testified under oath to House Republicans that their investigation into the president’s son ‘supported felony and misdemeanor tax charges,’ which were ultimately not brought against Hunter due to political pressures.
Weiss tried to bring felony charges against him in Washington, D.C., they said, but was blocked by the district’s top federal prosecutor Matthew Graves, a Biden appointee.
The ‘special treatment’ for Hunter became a pattern that kept happening, said the whistleblowers, who were told they would get in ‘hot water’ if they tried to speak with President Joe Biden’s adult children and grandchildren over the course of their investigation.
Shapley also shared handwritten notes from a meeting from October 2022 in which he quoted Weiss saying he was ‘not the deciding person’ on charging Hunter Biden with tax crimes, raising questions about potential improper handling of the case by DOJ.
The collapse of Hunter Biden’s original plea deal also presented more problems for his father, Joe Biden. The president is now facing more headlines and questions involving his drug-addict son’s case as he hits the 2024 campaign trail.
The White House and the president himself have maintained that he has never been involved in Hunter’s business dealings.
But Republicans are well into their own investigation looking into Hunter’s foreign business dealings.
As part of their probe, they spoke with Hunter’s ex-business partner Devon Archer, who testified that President Biden was in fact aware of his son’s dealings and sat in on at least 20 calls and multiple dinners with his son’s business partners.
Additionally, they have uncovered over a dozen shell companies that Hunter and at least 12 members of the Biden family used to funnel in foreign money.
Joe Biden also used various private email addresses from which he would sometimes send, receive and forward government correspondence according to emails found on Hunter Biden’s now-infamous laptop.
‘Robin Ware,’ ‘Robert L. Peters’ and ‘JRB ware’ were three pseudonyms used on emails that were about both official and family business.
As a result, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy launched an impeachment inquiry into President Biden earlier this week over his alleged connections to Hunter’s multi-million dollar foreign ‘influence peddling scheme.’
A picture from Hunter Biden’s laptop showed the now 53-year-old first son posing nude with a firearm
Hunter Biden is seen in a picture discovered on his abandoned laptop
