Scrutiny of Hunter Biden’s international business dealings is heating up in the final days of the presidential campaign, leading to questions about whether the story is the October surprise Republicans have been waiting for or a side issue in an election fought during a pandemic.
Questions about whether Hunter Biden used his father’s name and influence to conduct lucrative business with foreign countries, including China and Ukraine, have gained new traction as Election Day approaches.
A recent Washington Examiner/YouGov poll found that a plurality of voters believe Hunter Biden is engaged in corruption. Independents suspect this to be the case by 45% to 27%, although Democrats think not by a 46-point margin. The Democratic nominee has steadfastly defended his son, but an earlier Washington Examiner/YouGov poll found the public was split on whether they believed him. According to the survey, 41% said they thought the elder Biden had been honest about his son’s activities, but 45% disagreed.
Most participants in a focus group by Republican pollster Frank Luntz after the final presidential debate were interested in learning more about the Hunter Biden allegations, though Luntz himself has been critical of President Trump talking about them at the expense of the economy and COVID-19. Tucker Carlson’s Fox News interview with former Hunter Biden business associate Tony Bobulinski, who alleges the Democratic nominee knew more about his son’s dealings than he admits, drew huge ratings.
“I have never seen a politician at a national level be elected to office when America knew there was a corruption problem that they had,” said Republican strategist Mark Smith. “We got Jimmy Carter because of corruption.”
Democrats and some journalists have dismissed the focus on Hunter Biden as a distraction, even Russian disinformation. When the New York Post obtained what are believed to be emails from the younger Biden’s laptop that appeared to suggest he had arranged for his father to meet with a Ukrainian businessman while he served as vice president and the Obama administration’s point man on the country, social media companies effectively blocked users from sharing the story.
This raises the possibility that the Hunter Biden story is confined to the conservative press and may not reach the remaining persuadable voters. Many viewers of the Bobulinski interview, for example, may already be Trump supporters.
“I don’t think Hunter Biden’s story will move the needle with voters,” said Republican strategist Noelle Nikpour. “But if Biden wins, this will be a major problem going forward. They’ll definitely investigate, and Joe Biden could find himself in hot water, and either have a long investigation and possibly step down and hand the office to [Kamala] Harris.”
Such speculation might not be enough to benefit Trump.
“Focusing on Hunter/Joe and China will not be an issue voters can relate to, care about, and will be angry enough to motivate them to vote,” Nikpour said. “The real issues are COVID, economy, jobs, and the marketplace.”
That hasn’t stopped Trump from trying. “I don’t make money from Russia. You made three and a half million dollars, Joe, and your son gave you,” he said at the final presidential debate.
“Hunter got thrown out of the military. He was thrown out, dishonorably discharged for cocaine use,” Trump said in the first debate.
Democrats have countered that it is the Trump family whose business dealings should be scrutinized. “I mean his family we could talk about all night,” Biden said in the first debate. “This is not about his family or my family. It’s about your family.”
In 2016, Trump had an effect highlighting the Clintons’ financial success following a career in public service. Some reporters now say that Clinton scandals received an inordinate amount of coverage compared to those involving Trump, contributing to their reluctance to delve deeply into Hunter Biden.
National Public Radio’s managing editor called the Hunter Biden reports “stories that are not really stories.”
Critics have also pointed to the role Rudy Giuliani, a Trump ally and attorney, played in securing the younger Biden’s laptops.
