Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will plead guilty to three federal charges, the Justice Department said Tuesday in a court filing.

Poster Comment: If the man committed a crime, then he needs to do the time.

  • joekar1990@lemmy.world
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    2 years ago

    Hunter Biden will plead guilty to two federal tax misdemeanors and one charge tied to gun possession, according to the filing in a federal court in Delaware.

    This will be made a huge deal by the GQP but it will interesting to see what the full charges are.

    • KoboldCoterie@pawb.social
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      2 years ago

      I can see it already: “Ha! Hunter Biden did crimes! Do you think he should go to jail?”

      “Well, yes, we do.”

      “Gotcha! Why should Biden go free when Trump is being indicted?”

      “That’s not at all what we said.”

      “Clearly you’re just playing political favoritism! Witch hunters!”

      • Bipta@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        Remember when Epstein was arrested and Democrats said Bill Clinton should be held to account and Trumpies were like, “Yeah!” but still said Trump shouldn’t be?

        It’s a cult.

      • JonEFive@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        My argument has always been “if he’s done the crime, he should do the time”. And one of the things that always kills me about Hunter which perfectly illustrates your point is how much they hate the fact that Hunter has gotten lucrative jobs and deals based on his father’s political standing. Yet when you mention anything sketchy about the deals that Ivanka and Jared got? They clap their hands over their ears or make whatever excuse they can think of for why those two shouldn’t be held to the same standards relating to enrichment via political favors.

    • Grant_M@lemmy.ca
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      2 years ago

      Next thing we know he will be running for Congress as an R. Credentials are there!

    • CynAq@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      I’m interested to see how they spin the gun thing.

      I’m thinking something like “they only want guns for themselves and want to take ours away!”

    • FfaerieOxide@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      As of 15 minutes ago the article is no longer stating he pled out on the gun charge.

      Currently it states

      Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will plead guilty to two tax misdemeanors and struck a deal with federal prosecutors to resolve a felony gun charge, the Justice Department said Tuesday in court filings.

      And then goes on to say

      “A firearm charge, which will be subject to a pretrial diversion agreement and will not be the subject of the plea agreement, will also be filed by the Government."

      My guess is they more-or-less dropped it as they didn’t want him challenging the constitutionality of The Gun Control Act of 1968 like he said he would.

      • Flaky_Fish69@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        I appreciate this info… I’m a little disappointed though, because if it’s gonna get challenged… I’d love to see the maga crowd try to figure out how to be angry at hunter Biden for fighting gun control….

        • FfaerieOxide@kbin.social
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          I’d love to see the maga crowd try to figure out how to be angry at hunter Biden for fighting gun control….

          Probably with the same ease they dismiss Reagan having signed The Mulford Act.

          Their position has always been perfectly logically consistent, and it is, “We are the in-group, fuck you.”

    • OkBuddyRetread@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      I too care about using rich people that have actively sequestered themselves from the rest of society for imaginary board game clashes with other poor people! I want to play too!

      I see your Tiger Biden and raise you a Dennys Trump with an armour boost of leaked pee papers or something!! Did I win? Am I doing it right? Wait, what, there’s no winners? It’s all for the sheer joy of the game? Okay!

    • sensibilidades@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      They don’t actually care about the law. Hunter Biden is only useful to them as something to deflect and waste air complaining about, they don’t actually want anything to happen to him legally and they don’t care about principle.

    • DarkThoughts@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      Hunter is just their bullshit scapegoat for all their idiotic outrage & conspiracy shit, and only because he’s the son of the current democratic president.

    • Confound4082@vlemmy.net
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      2 years ago

      He also lied about drug use on his paperwork while buying the gun. Which is also felony.

      He also also admitted to drug posession while armed, which is another felony.

      • lanbanger@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        You know what’s also a felony? Stealing and concealing top secret-eyes only classified documents.

        • Barroux@kbin.social
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          2 years ago

          Sure and anyone doing that should be punished as well. That’s a separate topic. Hunter Biden needs to face the consequences for his actions, hence this thread.

        • iAmTheTot@kbin.social
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          2 years ago

          Yeah, uh, that’s why Trump is being charged with 38 federal crimes. What was even the point of this comment?

        • Calcharger@kbin.socialOP
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          I am downvoting this post not because I disagree with you, but this thread is about Hunter Biden’s legal issues, not Trumps. I hate Trump and everything he stands for, but I think we should focus our conversations on the topics at hand lest this become an echo chamber. There are plenty of threads on the fediverse devoted to talking shit on the orange menace and I encourage you to post there. Have a good one buddy

      • AidsAcrossAmerica@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        He also lied about drug use on his paperwork while buying the gun. Which is also felony.

        What questions about drug use are on the paperwork? Lawyer pretty told me to ALWAYS lie about previous drug use unless it’s gov paperwork or courts.

        • Straattos@kbin.social
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          2 years ago

          When getting a handgun license or registering a firearm in some states there can be questions like “are you a habitual drunkard” and “Are you an addict or habitual user of a controlled dangerous substance?” Lying about this can end up being a felony, at least in Maryland where I pulled the above two questions from.

          • AidsAcrossAmerica@kbin.social
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            2 years ago

            Do they really word it that way? That’s stupid broad. Applied for a IT Position for a local PD decades ago, the wording was very clearly “Have you ever done any illegal drugs; List every instance and explain”.

            I did not end up applying.

        • ironic_elk@kbin.social
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          Lawyer pretty told me to ALWAYS lie about previous drug use

          Would actually be hilarious if you’re clean.

          “Have I ever smoked marijuana? Well, no, I haven’t. So I better lie about this and check ‘yes’ just like my lawyer advices.”

        • Confound4082@vlemmy.net
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          The form is ATF4473, it is a government form, and lying on it is a felony.

          “Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance? Warning: The use or possession of marijuana remains unlawful under Federal law regardless of whether it has been legalized or decriminalized for medicinal or recreational purposes in the state where you reside.”

          • private_ruffles@kbin.social
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            2 years ago

            Not entirely relevant here but I’ll say it anyway.
            I fully support people not getting in trouble over lying on this question due to the marijuana inclusion.

      • HubertManne@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        Its funny that he got caught because of his memoirs book where he mentions a period of being on drugs and it coincided with him filling out a gun form saying he was not.

      • GillyGumbo@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        For real - any actual libertarian would be against the charges because being in possession of drugs shouldn’t be a barrier to owning a firearm. Something tells me they won’t be looking at it that way, though.

    • Eisenhowever@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      Shouldn’t make assumptions to absolve anyone of tax evasion. Its very common with rich people. Why make excuses for this guy? Just cause it would prove the right wingers right?

      I personally think right wingers are pretty stupid but if the truth is in the right wings favor then we just gotta suck it up and accept

    • Maeve@kbin.social
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      The article said his exgf tossed it into a dumpster, but that wasn’t what the doj found problematic. No, it’s that he seemingly bought it while addicted. If American conservative latch onto this, you may tell them they’re advocating for most of their friends/family to face felony charges.

  • FirstSeaLord@kbin.social
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    2 years ago

    Hunter Biden will plead guilty to two federal tax misdemeanors and one charge tied to gun possession

    Not exactly great but nothing conspiracy related you’all.

    • CaptainApathetic@lemmy.world
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      2 years ago

      I mean it’s actually good they prosecuted him, shows that they will go after people who commit crimes regardless of politics. This hurts the conservative narrative.

  • JakeBacon@lemm.ee
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    2 years ago

    Is this all that was on this “laptop” I keep seeing people meme about? I haven’t paid the whole situation much attention but this seems like a lot less of a deal than what some people were making it out to be.

    • IHeartBadCode@kbin.social
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      Um, sort of. Biden will plea guilty to two counts Federal misdemeanor of willful failure to pay income taxes (26 USC § 7203). Additionally, has entered into a pretrail diversion agreement on a felony charge of possession of a gun by a person who is addicted to illegal drugs. The agreement requires the defendant to comply with particular conditions set in the deal to avoid prosecution.

      While none of this per se is from the “laptop”, an investigation was opened up and these issues were discovered along the way. The original investigation was into any kind of money laundering scheme and thus it involved his taxes. Biden’s lawyer indicated:

      With the announcement of two agreements between my client, Hunter Biden, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, it is my understanding that the five-year investigation into Hunter is resolved.

      So given that, that is pretty much the end of any kind of criminal investigation. Each count can offer a fine up to $25,000 and 1 year minus a day prison time. However, considering that he is pleading guilty it will be significantly less than that. In fact, I believe I read somewhere that the DOJ was recommending probation, fine, and paid back taxes which is pretty consistent with how post-1980s IRS deals with tax evasion.

      I think Trump’s response is classic however:

      Wow! The corrupt Biden DOJ just cleared up hundreds of years of criminal liability by giving Hunter Biden a mere “traffic ticket.” Our system is BROKEN!

      One… Hundreds of years? Really? Two. Yeah, funny thing when you cooperate with investigators and have a competent legal representation, they tend not to want to throw the book at you. Three. STOP NOT PAYING YOUR LAWYERS DIPSHIT!! It really runs the pool down of lawyers that represent on complex legal issues pro bono.

      That last one I cannot stress enough. Proper legal representation is critical to not getting railroaded. If you’ve got a pretty toxic reputation where few if any lawyers will work with you, you better buckle up and say “choo choo”.

      • Steeve@lemmy.ca
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        2 years ago

        Damn, dude got caught because his dad is Joe Biden. Hope my dad never becomes the president of the United States.

    • Invalid@kbin.social
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      2 years ago

      I’ve mostly seen the laptop being related to the accusations of quid quo pro between Hunter, Joe, and some Ukrainian businessmen or officials. The same accusations as the FBI informant.

      There were a bunch of photos and emails from the laptop but it seems they mostly just want to use it against Joe.

      • mustyOrange@beehaw.org
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        There’s no way that laptop didn’t have extra shit put on it. Im not a fan of Biden by any stretch, but the whole thing is just silly and murky. Could there be some possibility of corruption with the Bidens? Absolutely - but this laptop will never prove anything

        From the hunter Biden laptop Wikipedia

        Neither analyst could verify the vast majority of the data, nor could they find clear evidence of tampering but they note “key pieces of evidence useful in discovering tampering were not available.” In some cases, The Post matched content to other sources “that the experts were not able to assess”. The unverifiable emails included some prominently reported previously by other news outlets. The analysis found that people other than Hunter Biden had created six new folders on the drive over a week after the original report by the New York Post and months after the laptop had been taken into FBI custody. It also found that data had been accessed and copied off the drive by people other than Hunter Biden over the course of nearly three years.

        The whole thing is a bunch of disinfo bullshit

    • TwistedFox@kbin.social
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      The GOP accusations were a tonne of child porn and conspiracied themselves into proof of murder, pedophilia rings and all sorts of crime. The laptop likely didn’t exist, and if it did, certainly wasn’t his.

  • Ragnell@kbin.social
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    2 years ago

    So President’s sons are no longer offlimits. Sweet. Soon an ex-President, and then maybe we can actually manage to impeach a sitting official that I hope is someone on SCOTUS.

    • OOFshoot@beehaw.org
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      Honestly? Even though Trump fans don’t give a shit about rational arguments, it’s nice to know they can’t pretend there’s no recent precident for charging a president’s family with crimes.

  • sensibilidades@kbin.social
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    I mean this completely apolitically - has anyone ever seen Hunter Biden and Jordan Peterson in the same place at the same time?

  • Snapz@beehaw.org
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    Remember, the trump sycophants have ZERO capacity for nuance.

    As much as any conviction of trump is downplayed to “not even a big deal” or “nothing burger”, every conviction of a perceived “enemy” is automatically on par with them taking full responsibility for perpetrating a mass genocide.

    This will just be seen as ambiguously “guilty” and the cookoos will have all the catharsis and “OMGzzz!” reaction as if he was convicted at a jury trial of multiple crimes against humanity.

  • rebul@kbin.social
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    If he were poor and Black, he would’ve gotten 20 years. Surely there will Lib outrage?

      • JustAnotherOddOne@beehaw.org
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        Unfortunately not true; Trump pardoned several of his allies pre-trial, shutting down the process down before convictions could be secured. This included, notably, a Mossad agent responsible for recruiting US military personnel as assets; Steve Bannon, who on top of everything else was facing fraud charges for all the money that disappeared from the border wall crowd funding scam; and Kenneth Kurson, who ran a pro-Trump “newspaper” owned by Kushner, who was facing charges for cyber stalking Trump opponents.