Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett weighs in on whether the release of the classified documents report will be politically damaging for President Biden on 'Hannity.'
In the hit TV series "Suits," the lead character Harvey Specter is known as "the closer." His underlings construct the lucrative agreements, but Harvey’s mere appearance in a room or a timely phone call always closes the deals. What Harvey sells at a high price is his outsized reputation —the prospect of power and influence.
That appears to have been Joe Biden’s role in the numerous overseas schemes that netted tens of millions of dollars for his son and family.
The elder Biden adopted a Specter-like modus operandi, according to evidence uncovered by the House impeachment investigation. That is, Hunter Biden solicited deals with foreign actors by selling access to his powerful dad and promises of influence. Joe would attend meetings or show up at dinners arranged with the benefactors. Sometimes he’d simply join in on a phone call. His presence signified his assent and participation, thus closing the deals.
Enormous sums of cash would immediately flow into Hunter-controlled banks accounts where the payola was funneled through a complex web of shell companies. Some of it was then distributed to Biden family members. In legal terms, the House Oversight and Judiciary committees portray Joe Biden as a witting accessory who actively aided and abetted the influence-peddling schemes by helping to sell the "Biden Brand."
Hunter associates Devon Archer and Tony Bobulinski have already testified in detail how the Bidens enriched themselves by marketing their own brand as the Washington DC power version of a Nike sports brand. The first son put it best in a WhatsApp message to his Chinese business partners when he bragged, "The Bidens are the best at doing exactly what (the) Chairman wants."
As Harvey Specter liked to say, "It’s not bragging if it’s true." And the Chinese knew that better than anyone.
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In one deal alone with the Beijing conglomerate CEFC China Energy, the Bidens hauled in $5 million. The money was wired only after Hunter sent an urgent missive armed with a thinly veiled threat, "I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled." For emphasis, Hunter then added, "I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction."
The CEFC transaction is especially illuminating because there are coded references to Joe Biden receiving a 10 percent cut of future profits that could have reached hundreds of millions of dollars. Two of Hunter’s former partners confirmed that Joe was "the Big Guy." The IRS whistleblowers also verified it, although they complained that Biden’s Department of Justice tried to cover it up.
HUNTER BIDEN WAS PAID $100K A MONTH THROUGH CHINESE FIRM VENTURE, EX-ASSOCIATE TESTIFIED
Recently, Bobulinski testified, "The only reason any of these transactions took place…was because Joe Biden was in high office. The Biden family business was Joe Biden, period." Bobulinski explained that the Vice President would call or meet with Hunter’s overseas partners "to demonstrate the ‘Biden Brand’ to whoever was in that meeting, whether it was the Ukrainians, the Romanians, the Russians, Colombians, Chinese, whoever it was. That’s all he had to do."
It’s a crime to use your public office to confer promises of benefits in exchange for money to yourself or your family. It constitutes both bribery (18 USC 201) and a violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. It also qualifies as a felony under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
Is there irrefutable proof that Joe Biden committed corrupt acts under the law? That is unclear. However, there is compelling evidence, both direct and circumstantial, which leads in that direction—documents, photographs, text messages, emails, White House logs, and witness testimony. Collectively, it appears to implicate the elder Biden as complicit in his son’s illicit activities.
IRS whistleblowers accumulated evidence of Joe Biden’s involvement, but told Congress how they were constantly stopped from pursuing it by the President’s DOJ and Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss. When Weiss concocted a sweetheart plea deal for Hunter along with blanket immunity, it was the explosive testimony of the whistleblowers that set it ablaze.
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It’s no surprise that James Biden denied that his brother was ever involved in any foreign dealing. But James also swore that he was not connected to the aforementioned Chinese business deal with CEFC. That is, until he was confronted with an agreement that he signed evidencing his participation. Then, he suddenly contradicted himself and pleaded amnesia. Maybe it runs in the family.
When Hunter Biden testifies behind closed doors on Wednesday, he will likely stonewall questions with diversions, denials, and acute memory failures as his uncle did. He will almost surely cite his addictions as an excuse for not recalling anything he did when he scammed and suckered Russia, Ukraine, China, Romania, and Kazakhstan for millions of dollars. He’ll insist that he’s not a grifter, but a poor addled soul.
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 10: Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, departs a House Oversight Committee meeting at Capitol Hill on January 10, 2024 in Washington, DC. The committee is meeting today as it considers citing him for Contempt of Congress. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Or perhaps Hunter will invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Given the nine felony tax charges against him in California and the three criminal gun charges in Delaware, the right to remain silent would be the wiser choice. If he does, it will render all his recent shenanigans on Capitol Hill as little more than a public relations charade.
Regardless, as the presidential election approaches, the Bidens will continue their litany of lies in public by insisting that they did nothing wrong in banking more than $20 million from America’s adversaries, as documented by the House committees that examined a slew of banking transactions, wire transfers, and more than 150 Suspicious Activity Reports filed with the criminal division at the Department of Treasury.
Maybe the Bidens, in their twisted minds, think their self-enrichment schemes were justified.
And maybe that’s what Harvey Specter meant when he quipped, "Sometimes, good guys gotta do bad things to make the bad guys pay."
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Gregg Jarrett is a Fox News legal analyst and commentator, and formerly worked as a defense attorney and adjunct law professor. His recent book, "The Trial of the Century," about the famous "Scopes Monkey Trial" is available in bookstores nationwide or can be ordered online at the Simon & Schuster website. Jarrett’s latest book, "The Constitution of the United States and Other Patriotic Documents," was published by Broadside Books, a division of HarperCollins on November 14, 2023. Gregg is the author of the No. 1 New York Times best-selling book "The Russia Hoax: The Illicit Scheme to Clear Hillary Clinton and Frame Donald Trump." His follow-up book was also a New York Times bestseller, "Witch Hunt: The Story of the Greatest Mass Delusion in American Political History."
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