Hunter’s failures have been sufficiently documented in this thread. I trust I don’t need to repeat them. Joe is not responsible for Hunter’s bad decisions. Hunter is an adult, after all. But most of us know that there are negative consequences to bad decisions and most of us don’t live a life of privilege in which our name recognition somehow always saves us from the worst of the consequences. And not just saves us but actually rewards us financially while having done little to nothing to deserve it.
Now you may well ask what that has to do with Joe Biden. I may well ask what does it not have to do with Joe Biden? Now, do I expect Joe to abandon his son? Of course not. A father loves his son. Who isn’t sympathetic to that instinct? But in the best possible light, Joe Biden has been over-indulgent and looked the other way. From a political instinct point of view, that has not worked well for him. So it would behoove Joe, while he’s president, to have a conversation with his son and encourage him to put higher considerations above his own personal financial gains. Perhaps Hunter is too selfish and inconsiderate to do that. Or, perhaps, Joe is too indulgent. Or, and I realize a Democratic president would never do this, perhaps Joe is tacitly complicit in Hunter’s shenanigans and is satisfied with making this the problem for the White House Office of Ethics. Now, does that make Biden worse than Trump? Does it make him a bad president? I’ve certainly not said or implied that. But plenty of people have tripped over themselves rushing to accuse those daring to be critical of this latest development of being <gasp!> Republican propaganda rubes.
The possibility of a conflict of interest always exists. Hunter Biden existing as a human being on planet Earth creates the possibility for a conflict of interest – someone could offer him money in exchange for trying to influence his father.
Until there’s evidence of an actual conflict of interest, who cares?
I’m sorry, I assumed you were like me and had no idea about what kind of personal conversations Joe Biden has had with his son. If you’re aware of all the conversations Joe has had with his son, and he’s never said anything like this before, then I agree with you that Joe Biden has been over-indulgent.
Can you tell me more about the personal conversations Joe has had with Hunter? What other personal and private conversations has Joe Biden had that you have detailed knowledge about? Can you share how you obtained this knowledge? I expect you could make a lot of money with this kind of information.
Do you think Loie Hollowell, a trained artist with a master’s degree, is a comparable example to Hunter Biden, an untrained outsider with no skills other than being named Biden?
Again, what, exactly, is the ethical rule? Relatives a sitting President aren’t allowed to sell artwork? Or is it just a “I know it when I see it” rule that relatives of a sitting President aren’t allowed to engage in activities that create a perception of potential for influence peddling? Something else?
And, again, who, exactly, is violating or potentially violating this rule? Has President Joe Biden done anything unethical? If so, what? Is Hunter Biden the one violating this rule? If so, how can a private citizen be bound by special ethics rules just because they happen to be related to a sitting President?
This isn’t how government ethics is supposed to work. You’re supposed to eliminate the conflict of interest.
It’s frowned upon (or was, until Trump) to say “yeah there’s a conflict, but deal with it because you can’t prove we’re doing anything wrong.”
I’m not President and I don’t know how Joe should mitigate it. I assume he has an army of attorneys and advisors who can help him get right, and as a constituent (and Biden voter!) I expect him to do so.
What evidence is there of a conflict of interest? So far, all I can see is the potential for a conflict of interest, which will exist until everyone and everything Joe Biden cares about has expired (or his presidency ends).
This isn’t how government ethics is supposed to work. You’re supposed to eliminate the conflict of interest.
It’s frowned upon (or was, until Trump) to say “yeah there’s a conflict, but deal with it because you can’t prove we’re doing anything wrong.”
I’m not President and I don’t know how Joe should mitigate it. I assume he has an army of attorneys and advisors who can help him get right, and as a constituent (and Biden voter!) I expect him to do so.
What evidence is there of a conflict of interest? So far, all I can see is the potential for a conflict of interest, which will exist until everyone and everything Joe Biden cares about has expired (or his presidency ends).
As long as you keep repeating the question, I’m going to keep repeating the answer. Conflicts of interest are supposed to be addressed by eliminating them, not by saying “what can ya do.”
Hunter Biden is a private citizen. He isn’t bound by government ethics rules.
So…you don’t know what President Biden should do about the actions of a private citizen, you just expect him to do…something. I am frankly at a loss here. I genuinely don’t know how to respond to that.
If you think the MA is the difference, I’ll let you in on the secret that an MA and a wine key will get you a good job at many nice restaurants. So if I list the artists who don’t have a degree do you share the question you really want an answer to?
I agree – eliminate conflicts of interest. Sounds good to me! But what does this have to do with this situation? You’ve presented no evidence of a conflict of interest. The potential for a conflict of interest is a different matter, and impossible to eliminate, barring perhaps infanticide. So I ask again – what is the evidence for an actual conflict of interest, as opposed to the potential for a conflict of interest (which will exist as long as human beings have families they love)?
I couldn’t tell you anything about any art transactions at all, really. I think Banksy sold some stuff on the street anonymously for like a hundred bucks one day sometime int he last 20 years; I heard about that.
How many art transactions in the last ten years do you know off the top of your head?
What does your mind-reading have to do with the court of public opinion?
I thought you were saying you believe Joe Biden should have a specific conversation with Hunter. That presumes that he hasn’t done this already. Why are you presuming that he hasn’t done this already?
Why do you think it’s my job to tell a public servant how to do their job, which involves dealing with potential or apparent conflicts of interest? I also want Biden not to start a war with Russia, do I need to provide a comprehensive diplomacy plan, or can I just expect him to… y’know… use the resources at his disposal to figure out how to do it?
When your art sells for millions of dollars, you can afford to sell a piece or two for a hundred bucks for the added publicity and entertainment value of fucking with the art brokers.