# The Hunter Biden Investigation {thread started in 2019}, Hunter Pardoned on December 1, 2024 **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 28, 2019, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964 "2019-09-28T19:54:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 26
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2023, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/503 "2023-08-03T20:38:46Z")
I also think it lends more credibility when the lawyers file … briefs. Okay. I hate myself a bit for that one, but there it is. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2023, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/504 "2023-08-04T05:22:32Z")
That’s presumably after the police have taken down the particulars. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/505 "2023-08-11T17:05:54Z")
and now a special counsel is appointed. this is getting to the bill clinton investigation level. 5 years and now a special counsel. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/506 "2023-08-11T17:17:04Z")
The Special Counsel is the same person that has been investigating it to-date. I don’t think it will make much of a difference, except in terms of the optics, since the prosecutor (Weiss) hasn’t asked for the power until just now and so seems to have been satisfied that he could do what he wanted to do, without. Possibly more relevant is that the Prosecution and the Defense (Biden) have said that they fundamentally can’t agree on the terms of the plea deal and need more time to hammer it out. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/507 "2023-08-11T17:19:52Z")
Here’s a gift link to the Washington Post’s article on the special counsel announcement: > **[Justice Department names special counsel in Hunter Biden case](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/08/11/doj-merrick-garland-hunter-biden-weiss/?pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJyZWFzb24iOiJnaWZ0IiwibmJmIjoxNjkxNzI2NDAwLCJpc3MiOiJzdWJzY3JpcHRpb25zIiwiZXhwIjoxNjkzMTA4Nzk5LCJpYXQiOjE2OTE3MjY0MDAsImp0aSI6IjAzNWM0NTJhLTU2YmItNGE1OC1hNDk3LWU0NzMzNzQ5NWMyZCIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lndhc2hpbmd0b25wb3N0LmNvbS9uYXRpb25hbC1zZWN1cml0eS8yMDIzLzA4LzExL2Rvai1tZXJyaWNrLWdhcmxhbmQtaHVudGVyLWJpZGVuLXdlaXNzLyJ9.xEvGaCx77IvWMmAQg7GgvTPva3lws_B3VWncvXQNPj0&itid=gfta)** > > Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed U.S. Attorney David Weiss of Delaware as special counsel in the investigation into Hunter Biden’s tax case and overseas business dealings ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/508 "2023-08-11T17:20:21Z")
He also immediatly requested Deleware judge to dismiss on ‘wrong venue’ and was going to move the venue elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/509 "2023-08-11T17:43:34Z")
> [@simster](#): > > He also immediatly requested Deleware judge to dismiss on ‘wrong venue’ and was going to move the venue elsewhere . That could explain his request to be special counsel. It expands his jurisdiction out of his home district. (I haven’t read the articles, maybe they covered this). He probably wants a judge who will rubber stamp the original plea deal. (as most would) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/510 "2023-08-11T17:44:59Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > It expands his jurisdiction out of his home district. (I haven’t read the articles, maybe they covered this). Yup, the WaPo article to which I linked mentions it: > [@](#): > > The appointment could clarify whether Weiss can bring charges in states outside Delaware. An IRS agent who supervised the investigation told Congress this year that Weiss had said he could not bring charges outside Delaware. > > The Justice Department has denied the IRS agent’s claims. > > “As special counsel, he will continue to have the authority and responsibility that he has exercised previously to oversee the investigation and decide where, when and whether to file charges," Garland said Friday. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/511 "2023-08-11T18:03:27Z")
Interestingly, the MAGAt wing of the House of Representatives as characterized by Jim Jordan, et. al, are not pleased with this news. It is nearly all I need to know about this appointment. Already there is outcry that a special counsel must be appointed from outside the DOJ. I expect Merrick Garland is well aware of this and did it anyway. So there must be a workaround and he must have some reason for proceeding in this way despite the… custom? Practice? Or is it an actual rule? Quick wrap up for Hunter Biden? ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/512 "2023-08-11T18:22:49Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Already there is outcry that a special counsel must be appointed from outside the DOJ. I expect Merrick Garland is well aware of this and did it anyway. So there must be a workaround and he must have some reason for proceeding in this way despite the… custom? Practice? Or is it an actual rule? I think Garland’s on pretty solid ground: > [@](#): > > § 600.3 Qualifications of the Special Counsel. > > (a) An individual named as Special Counsel shall be a lawyer with a reputation for integrity and impartial decisionmaking, and with appropriate experience to ensure both that the investigation will be conducted ably, expeditiously and thoroughly, and that investigative and prosecutorial decisions will be supported by an informed understanding of the criminal law and Department of Justice policies. The Special Counsel shall be selected from outside the United States Government. Special Counsels shall agree that their responsibilities as Special Counsel shall take first precedence in their professional lives, and that it may be necessary to devote their full time to the investigation, depending on its complexity and the stage of the investigation. > > (b) The Attorney General shall consult with the Assistant Attorney General for Administration to ensure an appropriate method of appointment, and to ensure that a Special Counsel undergoes an appropriate background investigation and a detailed review of ethics and conflicts of interest issues. A Special Counsel shall be appointed as a “confidential employee” as defined in [5 U.S.C. 7511(b)(2)(C)](https://www.govinfo.gov/link/uscode/5/7511). [**SOURCE**](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-28/chapter-VI/part-600) And – being mindful that Trump supporters will throw anything they can against the wall (thus relieving everybody else of any perceived obligation to give even a nano-shit what they think) – Trump DID appoint David Weiss to babysit Hunter in the first place.d ETA: Errr. Now, I’m really rethinking whether those qualifications DO or DO NOT support Weiss’s appointment. [presses ‘pause’] ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/513 "2023-08-11T18:30:04Z")
> [@DavidNRockies](#): > > ETA: Errr. Now, I’m really rethinking whether those qualifications DO or DO NOT support Weiss’s appointment. > > [presses ‘pause’] So … > Patrick Fitzgerald’s appointment as special counsel in 2003 was specifically not made under the 28 CFR 600 regulation.[[25]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_counsel#cite_note-25) The special counsel regulations specify that a special counsel must be a lawyer from outside the US government, while Fitzgerald was already a federal prosecutor at the time of his appointment. [**SOURCE**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_counsel) [**18pp PDF letter from Comey to Fitzgerald appointing the latter to be Special Counsel**](https://www.justice.gov/archive/osc/documents/2006_03_17_exhibits_a_d.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/514 "2023-08-11T19:34:07Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Interestingly, the MAGAt wing of the House of Representatives as characterized by Jim Jordan, et. al, are not pleased with this news. It is nearly all I need to know about this appointment. > > Already there is outcry that a special counsel must be appointed from outside the DOJ. I expect Merrick Garland is well aware of this and did it anyway. So there must be a workaround and he must have some reason for proceeding in this way despite the… custom? Practice? Or is it an actual rule? > > Quick wrap up for Hunter Biden? Wasn’t John Durham appointed from inside the DOJ? ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2023, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/515 "2023-08-11T19:40:20Z")
He was. He was US Attorney for the State of Connecticut when he was appointed Special Counsel by Bill Barr to investigate the investigators in the Trump-Russia investigation. Good memory! ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/516 "2023-08-12T09:46:15Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Interestingly, the MAGAt wing of the House of Representatives as characterized by Jim Jordan, et. al, are not pleased with this news. It is nearly all I need to know about this appointment. I don’t know if that says something about the appointment, or just something about the fundamental difference between the two parties. Democrats were mostly happy when a special prosecutor was appointed to investigate Trump. Republicans seem to be upset that a special prosecutor has been named to investigate Hunter Biden. It seems that Republicans want to get some dirt, any dirt, on Biden, but their rejection of any and all sources of authority (government, courts, journalists, etc.) means they don’t have any forum in which to demonstrate his guilt. They know he did something wrong, and they seem mad that we don’t all just take their word for it. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/517 "2023-08-12T11:07:50Z")
They didn’t even want real dirt. Just the ghost of dirt that they could weave into a scandal to catch Biden-flies. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/518 "2023-08-12T12:58:44Z")
They’re surely bothered by the likelihood of a genuine investigation coming up with not much, or possibly nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/519 "2023-08-12T14:10:20Z")
I don’t think anyone could disagree that HB was involved in unethical and (very likely) illegal activities. But so far I haven’t seen any evidence that JB was involved in illegal activities, and the Repubs are looking like fools here. (And I’m saying this as a conservative-libertarian who did not vote for him.) ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/520 "2023-08-12T15:49:05Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > I don’t think anyone could disagree that HB was involved in unethical and (very likely) illegal activities. I’m not yet ready to go that far. Can you explain the unethical and very illegal conduct? I’m not saying it doesn’t exist, I just haven’t seen a clear explanation Being on drugs, in terms of scandalous behavior, doesn’t count here - it’s not the type of influence peddling that is being implied. And just being involved in international business doesn’t strike me as something inherently unethical. If he didn’t pay taxes on legitimate income, it’s an oversight, not proof of nefarious misdeeds. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/521 "2023-08-12T16:09:53Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > They’re surely bothered by the likelihood of a genuine investigation coming up with not much, or possibly nothing. Yep. The smart ones know that when they do real investigations, they pretty much always come up empty. See, Hillary’s email, Benghazi, Trump’s voter fraud panel after the 2016 election, and others. When that’s contrasted to the Democrats investigations, which always find and lay out clear evidence (See Jan. 6th committee hearings, and everything else Trump-related), the difference is clear. Keeping their voters completely ignorant is their only hope. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2023, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964/522 "2023-08-12T19:42:21Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > I’m not yet ready to go that far. Can you explain the unethical and very illegal conduct? I’m not saying it doesn’t exist, I just haven’t seen a clear explanation I thought it was agreed that he’d bought a gun while he was addicted to drugs and that there was some issue with his taxes. Apart from that, I haven’t heard of anything new. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964.md?page=25) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hunter-biden-investigation-thread-started-in-2019-hunter-pardoned-on-december-1-2024/840964.md?page=27)