There’s something rotten in American politics if both the president of the United States and the front-runner for the Democratic nomination have been accused of cozying up to foreign officials to make quid pro quo demands.
To figure out what went wrong, transparency is required from all parties involved. President Trump seems willing to comply. So far, former Vice President Joe Biden is avoiding the question.
The Republican National Committee urged Biden to release the full transcript of his calls with Ukrainian leaders. After the calls, he admitted in public to demanding Ukraine fire a prosecutor he considered corrupt while he was still vice president. As it happens, that same prosecutor was reportedly investigating Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, for shady business dealings with an oligarch-connected oil company.
Rather than address well-founded concerns, Biden’s campaign dismissed the RNC’s demand as impossible and illegal.
“Imagine our disbelief that Republicans called for Joe Biden to break the law and release classified transcripts he doesn’t have access to or permission to release, given their track record for holding politicians who commit crimes accountable and their general ethical and moral conduct across the board,” Biden spokesman T.J. Ducklo told Politico.
There’s no evidence Biden’s interactions with Ukrainian leaders were illegal or that his son’s business dealings were overtly corrupt. Regardless, this is a serious stain on Biden’s reputation and campaign, and he should be doing all he can to rectify a scandal that threatens sink his candidacy completely.
Instead, Biden’s campaign is doubling down and pointing the finger back at Trump, who has already agreed to release the full transcript of his call with Ukrainian officials.
Biden is already taking a hit in the polls. In a new Quinnipiac survey released today, Biden dropped 7 points and is now in second place behind Elizabeth Warren. Legal or not, this Ukraine business is very, very bad news for Biden. If he were smart, he’d try to get in front of it while he still can, if he still can.
