Hunter Biden trial: President changes his schedule to be with his son after guilty verdict
After three hours of deliberations, the jury convicted the president’s son on all charges
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Your support makes all the difference.President Joe Biden flew to Wilmington, Delaware, on Tuesday to be with his son Hunter Biden after a jury convicted him on three federal gun charges.
Hours after the verdict, the White House Press Office announced that the president’s schedule had changed and that he would head hometown. Later that afternoon, Biden landed in Delaware – greeting his son, daughter-in-law and grandson on the tarmac.
Hunter was charged with two counts of making false statements and one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm for obtaining a gun in October 2018 while he was addicted to crack cocaine.
The president has already said he will not pardon his son but issued a statement saying he and first lady Jill Biden love and support their son and are proud of his resilience in recovery.
Throughout Hunter’s federal gun charges trial, members of the Biden family flocked to the courthouse to show their support for the defendant.
On Tuesday evening, CNN aired a montage comparing and contrasting the very different reaction of Fox News hosts to the criminal convictions of Donald Trump and the younger Biden at their respective trials.
Democrat rep calls out Republicans for hypocrisy
Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts called out his Republican colleagues for accepting the verdict in Hunter Biden’s federal gun charges trial but denouncing the verdict in Donald Trump’s New York criminal trial.
“Apparently, when a Republican is convicted it’s weaponization. But when a Democrat is convicted, the president’s son no less, that’s justice. I mean, give me a break,” McGovern said during a hearing on Tuesday.
He added: “Hunter Biden was found guilty by a jury of his peers just like Donald Trump.”
McGovern accused Republicans of abandoning the rule of law to suit their political needs.
Watch: Joe Biden speaks about gun control after son Hunter found guilty
Live: Joe Biden speaks on gun control after son Hunter found guilty in historic trial
Watch live as Joe Biden delivers remarks at Everytown’s Gun Sense University in Washington DC on Tuesday 11 June, hours after his son Hunter was found guilty in a historic trial.
Joe Biden makes no mention of Hunter’s conviction during speech
President Joe Biden made no mention of his son, Hunter Biden’s, gun charges conviction while delivering a speech at the Everytown for Gun Safety event in Washington, DC.
The president’s remarks included acknowledging his administration’s steps in strengthing gun laws in the country and holding those accountable who break the laws.
His son was found guilty of lying on a federal gun form, lying to a firearm salesman and unlawfully possessing a gun on Tuesday.
Watch: Hunter Biden leaves federal court in Delaware hand in hand with the First Lady and his wife
From the trial: Hunter Biden’s ex-wife testifies
Hunter Biden’s ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle, outlined his drug use in detailed testimony at his federal gun trial last week.
A hesitant-seeming Buhle, in a tan suit, white shirt, and black glasses, testified that she found a broken pipe, pipe-cleaning materials, a white powder, and remnants of crystals in Biden’s car. She said she looked for drugs in his vehicle more than once so that her daughters wouldn’t drive with drugs in the vehicle.
She added that he continued to work while using drugs and that she found that others didn’t notice his drug use. He tried to hide his drug use from family and friends, she said.
The ex-wife added that they talked about him going to rehab, noting that he initially didn’t want to but that he eventually did.
Biden, in a dark suit and slicked-back hair, looked intently at Buhle but didn’t give away much emotion during her testimony.
On cross-examination, she said alcohol had been an issue throughout their marriage, and that Biden initially went to rehab in 2003, ten years into their marriage.
Congressman compares Democratic response to Biden verdict to Republicans
Joe Biden arrives in Delaware
President Joe Biden arrived in Delaware on Tuesday afternoon, meeting his son, Hunter Biden, on the tarmac where Marine One landed.
Hunter was joined by his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, and their son, Beau Biden.
Hunter Biden juror ‘felt sorry’ for Naomi having to testify in trial
Naomi Biden’s testimony during her father’s testimony weighed on the jury as they deliberated Hunter Biden’s conviction.
“No daughter should ever have to testify,” an anonymous juror told CNN an hour after the verdict.
Kelly Rissman reports:
Hunter Biden jury ‘felt sorry for Naomi’ having to testify in father’s trial: juror
A juror shared the moments that pulled at the panel’s heart strings during the high-profile trial
Hunter Biden conviction draws complaints from far-right social media
Far-right commentators couldn’t help but whine on social media moments after Hunter Biden became a convicted felon - despite asking for years for his conviction.
Gustaf Kilander reports:
Hunter Biden conviction draws strong complaints from far-right social media
‘The true crimes of the Biden Crime Family remain untouched,’ Charlie Kirk claims
Could Joe Biden pardon Hunter?
President Joe Biden ruled out pardoning his son, and the president has said he would respect the outcome of the jury trial, which marked the first-ever criminal proceedings of the son of a sitting US president.
But conservative commentators and social media critics have questioned whether the president will stand by his statements after his son’s conviction on three gun counts that could put him in prison for up to 25 years.
If Biden did pardon Hunter, he would be relying on longstanding executive authority that has been exercised dozens of times – but it would be an unprecedented and potentially politically devastating decision from a president who has repeatedly pledged that no one is above the law.
“I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal,” he said on Tuesday after the verdict was announced. “Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that.”