On Wednesday morning, Hunter Biden was scheduled to a guilty plea in a Delaware courtroom, marking the end of a yearslong federal investigation that many Republicans believed would put the president’s son in prison, and put an end to the Biden presidency.
Michael Schmidt, who covers national security and federal investigations for The New York Times, explains why none of that has happened.
Guest: Michael S. Schmidt, a Washington correspondent for The New York Times who covers national security and federal investigations.
Background reading:
- Under an agreement with the Justice Department, Hunter Biden accepted probation for filing his taxes late.
- Republicans in Congress sought to block the plea deal, arguing that it had been tainted by political interference.
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
This is an unofficial transcript meant for reference. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
From your times, I'm like our own this israeli this morning, when hunter Biden enters a guilty play in delaware, courtroom
it will mark the end of a year long federal investigation. That many republicans believed would put the press
his son in prison and put an end to the Biden presidency.
today, my colleague MIKE Schmidt,
Why none of that has happened.
It's Wednesday July. Twenty six so much
the past several years, we ve come to understand that the president's son hunter Biden was under a fellow.
Instigation and a case that had become profoundly politicized and today
as that investigation wraps up hunter Biden will enter a plea deal so set that scene for us in a few hours hunter Biden we
walk into a federal court room in delaware and he will plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges. Essentially he did not pay his taxes, pretty big tax bills for two years and he will admit to having lied to the federal government when he
purchased a handgun, because when he bought that hand gun, he like every american that tries to buy a gun is asked.
You using drugs. At this point like on a form correctly, he had to fill out a form and he check the box tat. He had not been using drunk when, in fact he had correct, ok and what kind of charges that you said, the first two
misdemeanors. The third thing is this unusual resolution of sorts of a criminal matter. It's called a diversion
agreement, they are going to divert birth to
accused of him on this charge, and if
stays clean for two years and he can do
used to not own a gun, he will never be prosecuted on it, okay, so in totality when he entered
His deal for the three issues you just raise. What kind of a prison sentence is looking up?
If everything goes according to plan, basically the agreement worked out by
the defence lawyers and the prosecutor
Is he will not go to prison for any time? So we are looking here at the president son entering a plea deal for a couple. A misdemeanor is and not
going to be serving any prison time whatsoever. That doesn't seem like all that big, a prosecution, effective seems like a very small prosecution. Is that what we had expected?
Well, if you were a rapporteur who was trying to fix,
out what was going on here for the past. Several
in several years this
is not a surprise, but
few are a republican or a donald trump supporter.
or someone who has been in
seeing a lot of donald trump and conservative media. Then.
this- is a very surprising outcome who this was going to
be the criminal matter that was going to expose
Not only biden
family members, but the president himself
as being someone that had taken much
from foreigners to change american policy.
Someone who was completely compromised by his foreign ties and that this whole matter was going to end. The Biden family
an essentially allow Donald trump to become
president and again right. It was going
all the way to the top, and it was
basically the watergate of the Biden
in the eyes and the imagination of the conservative women it was
to end this five decades
long political career of Joe Biden, which is not what happened or anything close to it. So help us understand MIKE what honour Biden actually did why
ever triggered a federal investigation, and why, for so many americans who, as you said, were ingesting this republican approach to this case, the thought was that it would ever become something that big, an import
so in some ways it's just the story of a father and his son
binding is the second son of Joe Biden and he ended.
becoming a lobbyist. He made her
they are of money in the early two, thousands in that job, but
and his father becomes a vice president and he stopped his lobbying were probably because his father gave I present. The optics were too
complicated to be a lobbyist and have your father is vice president, but hunter Biden had a lifestyle that he'd needed to fund and maintain so in an attempt to keep that life style. He heads down a different path, which was hunter Biden, was going to find opportunities abroad where he could
AIS and consult, hmm, which kind of sounds just as problematic as lobbying when your dad is vp, but for some reason he thought that was the better route. So he heads down this path with a business partner
and reaches these consulting contracts. These deals with foreigners. What kind of you give us some examples? The most important high profile, one of them all was with the ukrainian energy company called
teresa breeze were had a lot of problems. They were accused of being corrupt, and the obama administration
with Joe Biden leading the charge was supporting investigations into charisma as part of an international anti corruption push and so borri smell was trying to fit
their reputation and their issues a bra
and in the united states,
it's around this time that they hired hunter by two beyond their bore. So this is a pretty sticky wicket, as they say,
from the gecko in washington, where optics on
Conflicts of interest are really important and taken very seriously. This is not
something that looks so kosher end. It raise concern
inside the then obama administration about
what was really going on. So one is
happening with this messy arrangement, so hunter bite
and probably not someone that strikes you as a ukraine or energy expert, and he gets a job paying him six hundred thousand dollars a year to beyond the sport, to consult and advise and be a board member. So this is kind of what it looks like it is ripe, berries, ma
has probably hired hunter Biden with the idea
that he might help them get out of some of the state,
situations therein, knowing that his dad is vice president, why else would they pay him that much money,
it raises some darn good old fashion, good government questions like ok
you have the vice president of the united states. He has a sun watcher that
son be able to do
pursue his own career
in a way that is fair to the sun, but also does
tarnish american foreign policy right, and there are a lot of
essentially great options out there, and this probably isn't the best one? This is a smack dab, fair question
Should the vice president son be doing this? Does it
burmese american foreign policy. An american efforts to you know, do what it wants to do abroad. So because of this dynamic because of hunter binds. Ukraine
lings it cast a shadow or questions over everything that Joe Biden does in regard to ukraine, including his efforts to have a proper
Peter removed. Who was looking apparition right, and I remember this. It was because, according
who Biden and obama that prosecutor wasn't being vigilant enough in his pursuit of crops
It just takes this situation and it is ok. What's really going on here me,
for reasons that are legitimate. Maybe for reasons that are unlike what does Biden say throughout this
Here it about what his relationship is to his son
hunters work when it comes to ukraine.
he says he has no relation to his sons were, but
really doesn't have to address it, because it's not a big public issue right cause he's just vice president, his vice
resident? It's the end of the administration,
and he's not running for president
twenty seventeen, but then all of a sudden he is by twenty twenty, so bring us to that point in the store.
by two thousand and eighteen. In two thousand nineteen donald trump realises
dad he's gonna be running for real action and the person who he thinks is most likely to beat him is Joe Biden.
now when buying son walks away with millions of dollars from ukraine. He knows nothing and they're, paying him millions of dollars. That's corruption and trust
It starts to raise the issue of Joe Biden, hunter Biden and Sma, while I think Biden is going down, and I think, though, with your wife that, because now you may very well find that there are many other countries they scam,
Tromp comes up with an argument that Joe by
It is corrupt because of this one bite is a disgrace. What a sunday is a disgrace. The son took money from ukraine. The son took money from
I know a lot of he starts to pressure his justice department to do something about this, though I would say that President Zelensky, if it were me, I would recommend that they start an investigation into the
and he dispatches his law
time, lawyer and confident, rudy giuliani to ukraine too.
oh gather evidence that can then be brought back to the
It states justice department to be used in a prosecution,
as trump is.
Casting about for any way to raise this, he has his.
Now infamous perfect phone call with the ukrainian.
President, the load, a mere zalewski right and when
He says I would really appreciate it if you could get to the bottom of the
providing one hundred Biden brees. My story for me
by the way it might make a big difference in terms of some of that aid that the? U s sends to at the seams
that he's holding up much needed aid to prevent the russians from over running the country right. This, of course, becomes the basis for the first congressional impeachment adoniram correct drums. First impeachment right.
so in the background is trumpet kicking a ball this stuff about hunter.
A real justice department investigation is taking hold,
the justice department. Officials in washington took all the questions about hunter Biden and they gave them to the trump
pointed united states attorney in delaware, David wise to look into
and this is two thousand
starting in two thousand eighteen and nineteen to us as trump is trying to get
Rudy giuliani, to galvanise the world looking for evidence in is getting impeach for all this
whatever these federal prosecutors are
digging into hunter binds life got it
they're, starting this examination, basically of everything that hunter Biden has done. All of the deal's. All of his
worn interactions. All of his taxes. Every
you're looking at his entire life, and it's not known publicly that this is going on here,
like MIKE. This is the moment where two universes start to diverge
In one universe, like you said, there's an unseen
an investigation going on trying to figure out what is the, what with honour Biden and then the other
universe. Could you say it's too?
Nineteen trump is running
re election and eventually against Joe Biden and
as you say, kicking above his stuff spread
claims, which are trying
I think that look. There is the political and there is the law enforcement, so polite
we Donald trump is out there saying jobs
and in his son or corrupt, and it's all because of ukraine. On the,
their hand where no one
can see off to the side are
prosecutors were beginning to look at every aspect of hunter binds life right and the one we the public seas is the trump one and it becomes a drumbeat because of its coming up at major moment,
in the campaign? Roger? You know nothing.
about energy. You know nothing about. You know nothing about anything. Frankly, hunter you're, a loser. Why did you get one
five billion dollars.
This is a major tenant of his stump speeches in interviews in tweets and never did he do
with bernard hundreds of real fastened,
become so at the forefront of the campaign. They donald trump at one of the debates
raises the question of hunters- conduct this credit
berlin array, her hundred eighty three dollars a month.
with no experience in energy network,
I saw it did nothing wrong and parisian. Mister president, I want an answer is
is Biden, was adamant that there is nothing to what trump was saying. Trump is
essentially seeding the country
no notions of hunter Biden condom
other day another explosive report surroundings, zero experience, hunter Biden, he's kicking off.
All these different ideas and theories, conspiracy theories and allegations that are covered widely in the conservative media, and it's not just about hunter Biden. It's now,
about Joe Biden as he now
Here's to have put national security risk so that his family, he cash in and make millions hunter bind in his business partners, helped rich chinese investors and members of the chinese communist party
meetings would then vice president Zyobite there's a money order.
A case that I could prove and four minutes
Fourteen million dollars involving the binds as trump
in the final weeks of the election is looking,
for
any way to get the upper hand in an election? He knows he's losing something of a gift, for him appears
it is not just there is overwhelming, and that was hunter Biden slack
so hunter Biden.
had struggled mightily with addiction. He hit a low point,
two thousand and eighteen where he was smoking crack with strangers. In the midst of that, he had dropped off his laptop, which he thought he damage with water adder repair shop. In delaware,
He never went back to pick it up by the summer of twenty twenty, the height of the twenty twenty campaign, that laptop is in the hands of rudy giuliani.
and trump in giuliani think that they have the october surprise that will keep trump in office right. They believe that whatever is
my laptop is the key to unlocking what they have long believed and hold their supporters. Is the true corrupt,
Nature of the relationship between hunter Joe Biden and all the work understand
it's gonna, be there in some email in the laptop is not pretty. Its contents are very ugh.
Because what it is is a lot of photos.
in messages hunter Biden took and sent at the height of his addiction, but does that laptop end up containing anything?
That shows something we didn't already know about his relationship to his dad in his business. It doesn't go much further
her, then these major questions that have hung over hunter binds businesses
But of course this does not end up being and october surprised that changes
dynamic of the selection trump loses now
Leslie doesn't, except that fact but loses, but there is if you're tromp and you
This story do not go away the reality that a federal investigation
is still going on. In the background,
trump didn't know that he didn't in the week
after the election hunter vine put.
Statement and says on the subject of an irish tax investigation and
from says what the heck I didn't know about this, I didn't know about the federal investigation. Deity
any general billboard had kept it from trump and trump is furious, with bar
for not having publicized it to help him in the lead up to the election. So as Donald trump is heading off stage, the only hope that he in the right have that hunter Biden is going to
take down Joe Biden. Is this still ongoing investigation in delaware
trump, and the right now have an issue that investigation.
Will now be overseen by
oh binds. Justice department,
and his hand pit attorney general
we'll be right back.
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find it wherever you get your punkahs. So MIKE what happens once this federal investigation,
leaves the trump administration and is inherited by president binds justice department so for
He knows is clear as day that, if
tries to meddle in this at all? He's gonna get crush for so he is gonna, go to great pain,
to ensure that he has no influence or the appearance of that influence over the investigation. And what does that look like the grape
in the Biden and his administration go to
preserve the independence of the hunter by investigation. So,
the attorney general merrick garland, without
salting. Joe Biden keeps on that process
tudor in delaware.
David weiss, who was appointed by
right, which is a alone usual. As I understand it, new presidents of different parties
and they often replace all the us attorneys. They kept this guy on. They keep this guy on because he is going to finish. The hunter Biden investigation got it and they thought this was
best way to insinuate that in
instigation from the appearance of politics,
so what does this have to train from delaware? What does he ultimately find
and what are we in a learning about how much investigating has actually been doing is, as you said, zog going on in the background, so wise
friends over every rock or pretty much
rock it hunter binds life, particularly from this period of time when he was addicted to draw.
and was engaging in these risky unusual dealings with fires and
while the accusations and the things
from said were grandiose, remember,
who's the investigation that was going to expose the Biden family as Chris
only corrupt right, this
resignation by wise,
look at all these different things, and
narrowing to questions of Andrew widens taxes.
This purchase of a gun that he made in two thousand and eighty and my guts,
shutting of why the investigation now
rose so dramatically. Why
after turning over every rock looking at it.
We deal whether it was the bereaved medea ordeals like that. That weiss turns to what kind of feels like pretty pedestrian crewman
She is so if you accept wisest investigation at face value its that he looked at all
things in while they may raise these good old fashion government questions of appearance of impropriety or why
Is this elected official son doing these deals? Theirs,
criminality that right can be ugly and still be legal correct, but because he's turned over the rocks in hunter binds life from a particularly rocky period of time when he finds some stuff daddy
int kosher right, the tax issue, the gun issue an end like, I wonder how due process
peters normally think about crimes or alleged crimes like those, so legal experts will give you all sorts of it
indians. But my reporting on this shows that these crimes,
these are usually not charge wanna, because there, too, small there too small bore their typically dealt with through a civil, fine
but while finds himself in a situation where he has
found criminality that the president's,
has engaged in so is it the best thing for justice to avert your gaze of that criminality? What does that say?
This is an interesting case where, because the investor
it has gone on for so long and
Doug around and so many corners, it's pretty hard to not charge hunter Biden with anything politically speaking, even when the things he
be charged with, might not normally merit federal prosecutor charges Kerr, that's the weird position.
the wisest and am I guess, the word position that hunter Biden gets it. This is the kind of strange case,
where hunter buttons name in the position is in, are not helping him the way, perhaps they did with this deal with teresa but are hurting him when it comes to being charged with crimes. That might be, as you say, caught a small current. But, of course, my group
against, obviously don't see it. This way this case has turned out for them to be a major major disappointment, given their expectations,
for how it would turn out in the way they ve talked about
is they ve been gnawing on this hunter bide bone
for many years now and now
there being told that hunter Biden is gonna plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charge,
and have a diversion agreement on the purchase of a weapon right end being told that by a republican appointed? U s attorney no less, so the fix must have been it. In republicans, minds right, so how are they approaching this case? Now that you know in the minds of the justice department cut over so republic
hence had wrestled back control of the house earlier this year,
that has allowed them investigative power in the ability
to promote what they want to promote and raise what they want to raise.
What a welcome every
here today in the course of that dave,
focus themselves back on hunter Biden. Today we have to brave and credible hours whistleblowers who have risked their careers to come forward and provide important test about any done that
the help of irish investigators, who were
originally working on this case, iris investigators, who got
I didn't do it because of the allegations that hundred line didn't pay us taxes correct. My name is gary shapley. I worked as a special agent for iris criminal investigation for fourteen years, based on my experience, I'm here to tell you that the delaware? U S, attorney's office and department of justice handling the hunter bind tax investigation was
very different from any other case. My fourteen years at the irs to irish investigators, supported by house republicans, have come forward claiming they are whistleblowers and that there was political interference, so they have opened up a whole new chapter in the hunter Biden saga by accusing the justice department under both attorney general bar. When trump was president and attorney general miracle, ireland, when buying came in of treating hunter Biden differently,
because he was the son of a former vice president and the president in April. Twenty two in a hearing, a train general girl and was asked how the american people could be confidently. Menstruation was conducting a serious investigation into the presidents. Own son
the train, jenner girl and responded by saying, because we put the investigation the hands of a trumpet pointy. He led congress to believe the case was insulated from improper political influence
because all decisions will be made exclusively by delaware. Nice attorney David wise, but that was not true
their most salacious allegation is that weiss, the trump appointed? U s attorney.
Did not really have the full authority to be
whatever charges he wanted. I wash you nice attorney why cell room for senior
we are in iraq, senior leaders on october. Seventh, two thousand twenty two that he was not the deciding person and whether charges were filed. That was my read
that the notion that, when attorney
Oh garland said why,
it has the ability to do what he wants with this investigation that that wasn't true. If there's no further business without objection, the committee stands adjourned, but it doesn't appear like that's. The case. Weiss in letters to congress has said that he did have full authority to do what he wanted to do,
This investigation and that there is nothing to the allegations, so this has become a bit of he said he said
de the whistleblowers and wise yes, but with the republicans holding up the whistle blowers as the truth tellers and
as evidence that the fix was her. So what should we make of what this has become since weiss, more or less ended? His investigation with a plea deal that we're about to see in court. Today
and the congressional publicans picked it up and said: no, no, no! We're gonna get to the bottom of this and
the kind of flying around whistle blower. Testimony now shall we think about that. I'm not sure I think
The one thing that I have learned is that
every time that you think the hunter story is over? There is something else so in
case, you had a
years long investigation
look at all the stuff and undermine sigh, frank, and last month it was announced that he was going to plead guilty
de in that, there was a resolution to all of this,
and then the whistleblowers stuff came and now
has taken on a life of its own? So while it looks like one hundred Biden walks into court today, it's the end
and as someone that has followed this weather
you're going all the way back to trump trying to get
the ukrainians to investigate hunter Biden or guilty
in delaware today, it just seems to keep on going.
so we may very well end up in a year or so in a
situation where there's a we run of
four years ago is presidential debates, Joe Biden onstage, with donald trump and donald trump is accusing Joe
fine of being involved in some sort of criminality with under Biden, even though the justice department is looked at all
his claims and decided. There's nothing to prosecute without taking
many leaps or liberties. It's pretty clear that the high
your Biden story is, can be something that republicans and trump or not
and be able to resist, seizing on because remember, Donald trump has been indicted by the Biden. Justice depart
on a slew, a felony charges that have exposed him too many years in prison. So is it that far fetched to think that donald trump will be back on that debate stage with jobs?
I saying you're justice department laid on the brakes for your son at this
time that a charge me in
the hunter bind story will keep going and going
Thank you very much appreciated. Thanks
on tuesday. In a last minute, maneuver congressional republicans and conservative activists sought to intervene in hunter bindings pleading file
legal brings that urge the judge in the case, to throw out the agreement that huh
Providing reached with prosecutors the times reports that the manoeuvre is unlikely to succeed, but highlights these,
ordinary links that republicans will go to keep the hunt
by the story in the national spotlight could write back with no fees or minimums banking with capital. One is the
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here's, what else you need to know today, on tuesday in a federal judge, struck down
the binding ministrations latest plan to reduce illegal crossings at the? U S, mexico border, a plan that the vital ministration says has been working. The plan put in place in may punished: migrants who cross the border illegally and rewarding those who scheduled appointments to seek asylum as a result, border crossing
fell sharply over the past few months. But the judge said at the policy violated federal law which says that foreigners who reach? U s? Soil are entitled to request asylum. No,
or how they entered the country and the? U s? Department of justice has opened a civil rights investigation into harvard university's policy of giving
preference to the relatives of alumni and donors. When admitting students. The investigation appears to stem from a complaint filed by activist who argue that the
foreign policy known as legacy admissions illegal,
discriminates against black hispanic. An asian applicants in favour of wealthy students who were less qualified, tidies episode
was produced by looking to educate and still a town with help from Michael Simon Johnson,
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from Michael men want and John ketchup contains original,
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engineered by Chris. Would our athenians.
is by just one burg and then land of wonderingly
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Transcript generated on 2023-08-02.