Senate Republicans argued on Tuesday that Hunter Biden reaching a deal to plead guilty to three federal charges related to tax crimes and the purchase of a handgun proves that there is a “two-tiered” system of justice that targets their side of the aisle.
The Justice Department wrote in a court filing Tuesday that President Joe Biden’s son had agreed to plead guilty to two counts of “willful failure to pay” his federal income taxes and would enter a “Pretrial Diversion Agreement” pertaining to possession of a firearm “by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.”
BIDEN FACES PROSPECT OF UPS STRIKE WHILE CONSOLIDATING UNION SUPPORT
U.S. Attorney David Weiss of Delaware brought the limited charges amid whistleblower allegations that the DOJ investigation was politicized and as the president insists his son has done nothing wrong. Weiss’s office put out a press release on Tuesday, noting that Hunter Biden had been hit with “two misdemeanor tax offenses and a felony firearm offense.” The Delaware federal prosecutor said that “the investigation is ongoing.”
Republicans have long contended Hunter Biden’s lucrative business dealings in Ukraine and China indicate he may have committed crimes related to foreign lobbying or money laundering, but they say the new charges fall far short of that.
A number of early reactions from GOP senators noted the differences in how the DOJ dealt with the younger Biden and former President Donald Trump, who was indicted earlier this month in special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into the mishandling of classified documents after leaving office. Nearly all of the lawmakers referred to the Biden deal as a “slap on the wrist.”
“So Hunter Biden gets a special plea deal, slap on the wrist — probably won’t do a day of time — while DOJ charges Trump as a spy and tries to put him in prison forever,” Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) tweeted Tuesday morning. “Two standards of ‘justice.'”
Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), who announced last week he would put a hold on all DOJ nominees in protest of what he called the “unprecedented political prosecution” of Trump, lambasted the Biden deal as evidence of the politicization of the department.
“Any other American would have the book thrown at them,” Vance wrote on Twitter. “The president’s son gets a slap on the wrist. This is exhibit 1,402 for why I’m holding Biden’s DOJ nominees. We have a two-tiered justice system in our country. It’s a disgrace.”
“A slap on the wrist for Hunter Biden while ‘The Big Guy’ continues to hunt down his top political opponent,” Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) said of the plea agreement, making similar reference to the federal Trump indictment. “This doesn’t show equal justice. It’s a mockery of our legal system by a family that has no respect for our laws.”
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), who led a Senate investigation into the Biden family business dealings, tweeted: “A sham investigation within our multi-tiered justice system produces the predictable result: Hunter gets off with a light slap on the wrist, and the public will not learn the truth. When POTUS lied and said Hunter ‘has done nothing wrong,’ what he really meant to say was: ‘Hunter will never be held accountable for his actions.'”
“Today’s announcement that Hunter will plead guilty to low-level charges will further reduce confidence in federal law enforcement,” he added.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) vowed action from her side of the aisle on the matter, saying in a statement: “It’s no coincidence that less than a week after President Trump is arraigned, Hunter Biden is pleading guilty to a sweetheart deal with no jail time. The DOJ is going for the low-hanging fruit by charging Hunter Biden with a gun felony and two tax misdemeanors, after years of slow walking their investigation.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“For AG Garland to maintain his mantra that there is one standard of justice is pathetic,” she continued. “If the DOJ thinks this dismisses the $5 million alleged bribery scheme or the years of reported Biden family corruption, they are mistaken. We will not allow full accountability to fall by the wayside.”
Jerry Dunleavy contributed to this report.
