Special counsel David Weiss, who is prosecuting Hunter Biden for a gun crime, rebutted the president’s son’s arguments that the prosecution is politically motivated, writing in a new court filing that he is targeting the wrong administration.
Mr. Biden has requested to subpoena former President Donald Trump, former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr, and other officials, arguing a “vindictive or selective prosecution” against him.
“And Merrick B. Garland is the Attorney General that was appointed by President Biden and who personally appointed the Special Counsel.”
Mr. Weiss argued that Hunter Biden showed no evidence that Mr. Weiss himself displayed “bias, vindictiveness, or discriminatory intent,” nor any evidence that the previous administration, “political opponents of President Biden,” had “improperly pressured” the current administration to pursue charges against Hunter Biden.
“His arguments ignore an inconvenient truth: No charges were brought against [the] defendant during the prior administration,” the special counsel argued.
Hunter Biden’s indictment took a path with a few twists and turns; his investigation began in 2018, but charges weren’t brought by Mr. Weiss until whistleblowers testified before Congress earlier in 2023.
Mr. Weiss had been leading the investigation for years before he was appointed special counsel this summer.
First, an indictment was unsealed to reveal that Hunter Biden was charged with tax misdemeanors for the years 2016 and 2017 and that he would not be charged with felonies related to possessing a firearm while he was a drug user.
That plea deal fell apart minutes into Hunter Biden’s arraignment when the judge questioned both parties about the terms of the deal.
Mr. Weiss later came back with an indictment charging Hunter Biden with the gun crimes and nulled the plea deal, which defense counsel opposed in court filings.
In doing so, Mr. Weiss also pulled the tax charges in Delaware made under the plea deal, opening the way to bring them in California and Washington, though it is still unclear whether those charges will be brought.
His attorneys argued that this is crucial and goes “to the heart of his defense” that his prosecution was “vindictive” or “selective,” owing to pressure from the Trump administration.
In the new response, Mr. Weiss’s office argued that Hunter Biden “never squarely identifies what right he is purportedly being punished for asserting.”
Rather than vindictiveness, they argue the charges against the younger Biden should not have come as a surprise.
The gun charges brought were based off Hunter Biden’s own admission that he was addicted to crack cocaine during the period in which he illegally purchased a gun—he had written about it in a memoir.
Based on the strength of that evidence and case, Mr. Weiss wrote: “It is unremarkable therefore that a prosecutor would choose to pursue charges.”
The special counsel also argued that, even putting aside the lack of evidence presented, a pretrial motion to dismiss is a case is not a defense, and therefore “may only be brought and litigated pretrial ... never argued to trial juries,” making the motion to subpoena materials for the trial procedurally wrong.
House Investigation
House Republicans on two committees have also been investigating Hunter Biden, this time for his financial dealings, and have subpoenaed him to testify on Dec. 13.During the years when his father was serving as Vice President of the United States, Hunter Biden worked at an international consultancy wherein his firm received large payments from Ukraine, Russia, and China.
House Republicans are alleging the Biden family was enriched by foreign nationals on the premise that they could influence the Vice President of the United States and later a leading candidate for the President of the United States, and have highlighted payments made to the Bidens by foreign entities.
