Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, testified on Wednesday before the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees, admitting in an opening statement to making “mistakes” and wasting opportunities but denying any involvement of President Biden in his business dealings.
Mr. Biden began his deposition at 10 a.m., which is part of House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry into President Biden to determine if he and his family members sold access to his office and political influence while he was vice president.
In an opening statement obtained by The Epoch Times, Mr. Biden admitted to missteps and squandered opportunities and privileges that came to him thanks to his family name, while criticizing the impeachment investigation against his father as illegitimate.
“To be clear, I have made mistakes in my life, and I have squandered opportunities and privileges that were afforded to me. I know that. I am responsible for that. And I am making amends for that,” Mr. Biden said. While he didn’t go into detail about the nature of his mistakes, he referred repeatedly to his battle with drug and alcohol addiction.
“But my mistakes and shortcomings are my own and not my father’s, who has done nothing but devote his entire life to public service and trying to make this country a better place to live,” he added.
Mr. Biden’s topline message was familiar, insisting as he has on prior occasions that his father was “never” involved in any of his business dealings.
“I did not involve my father in my business. Not while I was a practicing lawyer, not in my investments or transactions domestic or international, not as a board member, and not as an artist. Never,” he said.
Mr. Biden’s deposition is taking place behind closed doors, with an impeachment inquiry aide telling The Epoch Times that Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) intends to release Mr. Biden’s testimony “as expeditiously as possible.”
‘Influence peddling schemes’
Ahead of the deposition, Mr. Comer told reporters that Mr. Biden was testifying as a “key witness” in the impeachment inquiry into the president.
“We’re deposing Hunter Biden because he’s a key witness in our investigation of President Joe Biden,” Mr. Comer said. “Our committees have unearthed substantial evidence of President Biden and his family’s corruption.”
Mr. Comer alleged that the Bidens created 20 shell companies, most of them set up while Joe Biden was the U.S. vice president, which they used to receive over $30 million from countries like China, Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan.
He alleged that 10 members of the Biden family, including President Biden, “either participated or benefited from, the family’s influence-peddling schemes.”
Mr. Comer added that President Biden was “the brand” that the Biden family was selling and that his holding of high office was the only reason that any of the international business transactions that saw tens of millions of dollars flowing to the Biden family took place.
These transactions have been detailed in a House Oversight Committee timeline of what it calls “The Bidens’ Influence Peddling” scheme.
President Biden has repeatedly denied any involvement in his family’s business dealings.
Hunter Biden’s opening statement
Below is Mr. Biden’s full opening statement:
“I am here today to provide the Committees with the one uncontestable fact that should end the false premise of this inquiry: I did not involve my father in my business. Not while I was a practicing lawyer, not in my investments or transactions domestic or international, not as a board member, and not as an artist. Never.
“You read this fact in the many letters that have been sent to you over the last year as part of your so-called impeachment investigation. You heard this fact when I said it weeks ago, standing outside of this building. You heard this fact from a parade of other witnesses — former colleagues and business partners of mine, including my uncle — who have testified before you in similar proceedings. And now, today, you hear this fact directly from me.
“For more than a year, your Committees have hunted me in your partisan political pursuit of my dad. You have trafficked in innuendo, distortion, and sensationalism — all the while ignoring the clear and convincing evidence staring you in the face. You do not have evidence to support the baseless and MAGA-motivated conspiracies about my father because there isn’t any.
“You have built your entire partisan house of cards on lies told by the likes of Gal Luft, Tony Bobulinski, Alexander Smirnov, and Jason Galanis. Luft, who is a fugitive, has been indicted for his lies and other crimes; Smirnov, who has made you dupes in carrying out a Russian disinformation campaign waged against my father, has been indicted for his lies; Bobulinski, who has been exposed for the many false statements he has made, and Galanis, who is serving 14 years in prison for fraud. Rather than follow the facts as they have been laid out before you in bank records, financial statements, correspondence, and other witness testimony, you continue your frantic search to prove the lies you, and those you rely on, keep peddling. Yes, they are lies.
“To be clear, I have made mistakes in my life, and I have squandered opportunities and privileges that were afforded to me. I know that. I am responsible for that. And I am making amends for that. But my mistakes and shortcomings are my own and not my father’s, who has done nothing but devote his entire life to public service and trying to make this country a better place to live.
“During my battle with addiction, my father was there for me. He helped save my life. His love and support made it possible for me to get sober, stay sober and rebuild my life as a father, husband, son, and brother. What he got in return for being a loving and supportive parent is a barrage of hate-filled conspiracy theories that hatched this sham impeachment inquiry and continue to fuel unrelenting personal attacks against him and me.
“Over the last year, Republicans have taken my communications out of context, relied on documents that have been altered, and cherry-picked snippets of financial or other records to misrepresent what really happened. Examples of this include a few references to my family in emails or texts that I sent when I was in the darkest days of my addiction. If you try to do that again today, my answers will reveal your tactics and demonstrate the truth that my father was never involved in any of my businesses.
“My testimony today should put an end to this baseless and destructive political charade. You have wasted valuable time and resources attacking me and my family for your own political gain when you should be fixing the real problems in this country that desperately need your attention.
“Thank you.”
Samantha Flom contributed to this report.
Tom Ozimek | The Epoch Times
Tom Ozimek is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times. He has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education.
