Allegations against Hunter Biden have been consistent for years, dating back to when former President Donald Trump dispatched Rudy Giuliani to dig up dirt around the time Joe Biden announced his run for the White House in 2019. The allegations suggest that Hunter Biden, while struggling with a drug addiction, made millions of dollars from foreign companies because of his last name. While there have been no criminal charges or allegations, even from Republicans, of something illegal, there are an evolving series of disclosures, investigations, and legal problems facing the president's son.
These developments include House Republicans filling in unflattering details about Hunter Biden's substantial income from foreign sources, attorneys for an IRS whistleblower alleging political interference at the Justice Department in the Hunter Biden criminal investigation, and an Arkansas paternity-related case that has the potential to fill in details about income from his art career and help from wealthy friends.
A long-simmering federal criminal investigation could cause even more problems for the president's son if prosecutors ultimately decide to bring charges against him, potentially over alleged tax violations and making a false statement relating to a gun he bought.
At a news conference announcing a new report, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said he views this as an investigation not just of Hunter or other Biden relatives, but of President Biden and his family's "shady business deals that capitalized on Joe Biden's public office and risked our country's national security."
While no investigation has yet proven any corruption related to the president and his son, the money flowing to Hunter Biden, his uncle James, and even his brother Beau's widow Hallie does not paint a pretty picture.
Opaque business deals invite suspicion, but it's a little strange to see Republicans who defend Trump's business, now attack the Bidens. It is similarly hypocritical of Democrats who have attacked Trump to dismiss anything to do with Hunter Biden.
As Trump and Biden prepare to run against each other (again) for the presidency, and with the focus on Hunter entering a new fever pitch, the question will be whether all the time and effort Republicans have invested investigating the president's son will change the storyline.