CNN host Jake Tapper conceded that Hunter Biden’s decision to take a job for a Ukrainian natural gas firm while his father was vice president “stinks.”
During an interview with Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy III on Sunday, Tapper acknowledged that he found it suspicious that Biden, 49, landed a high-paying position on the board of Burisma while his father, Joe Biden, was leading diplomatic efforts in the region for President Barack Obama.
Tapper acknowledged that there is not evidence of criminal wrongdoing between the Bidens and Burisma but admitted that the optics were not great.
“It is true that there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by Vice President Biden or that Hunter Biden broke any laws at all, but frankly it does stink that Hunter Biden got this contract with no expertise in the energy sector and that he likely — he already said he probably got that money, which was significant, because of his connection with his father, the vice president at the time who also in charge of Ukraine at the time,” said Tapper.
He passed the question off to Kennedy, asking, “Do you think that future presidents and vice presidents should say my relatives cannot cash in in any way on their connection to me?”
Kennedy noted that, as a member of a political dynasty, he believes there must be a “very clear delineation” to ensure that it does not look as though families are profiting from public offices.
As Tapper noted, Biden didn’t have experience in the energy sector before taking the $50,000-per-month board position. He also had a well-documented history of drug abuse issues. Biden was discharged from the Navy in 2014 for cocaine use. He also faced a scandal in 2016 after a crack pipe was found next to his ID in a Hertz rental car.
