President Joe Biden on Monday had a brief response when asked by a Fox News reporter if he lied about keeping his distance from the business dealings of his son, Hunter Biden .
The younger Biden has been the subject of GOP ire and conspiracy theories for years, with the current Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee launching an investigation into his business with foreign entities in countries like China and Ukraine.
Conservatives have accused him of using his father’s political power to his own benefit in these dealings, with some also accusing President Biden of taking part in said dealings, despite minimal definitive evidence, an accusation which he has consistently denied, stating that he never discussed his son’s business matters with him.
On Thursday, congressional Republicans released a 2017 WhatsApp message purportedly from Hunter Biden, in which he appeared to invoke his father in attempting to influence a Chinese associate.
President Biden on Monday held an address before the White House press pool on his plans to invest in bringing high-speed internet to more Americans. As he departed the gathering, he was asked by Fox News White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich whether or not he lied about not discussing business dealings with his son. Biden cut to the point.
“No,” the president said.
After a years-long investigation into his personal finances, Hunter Biden last week accepted a plea deal from the Department of Justice that will see him avoid spending time in prison. As part of the deal, he will plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges stemming from his failure to pay income taxes in prior years. A charge of unlawfully possessing a firearm also remains in play for now, but it is believed that this charge could be dismissed as part of a future arrangement.
Despite Hunter Biden agreeing to accept charges, the development has provoked further ire from Republicans who believe that the president’s son should have received a harsher punishment. Some have gone further, alleging that President Biden intervened on his son’s behalf to get him a “sweetheart deal” to keep him out of prison. Congressional Republicans have also put forward two IRS whistleblowers, who claim that the DOJ worked to impede the investigation, which Attorney General Merrick Garland has denied .
President Biden and his administration have denied having any part in the investigation of Hunter Biden. Some have argued that the U.S. Attorney assigned to oversee the case, Donald Trump -appointee David Weiss, was not replaced by the president so as to avoid the appearance of intervention.
Newsweek reached out to the White House press office via email for comment.