House Oversight Committee Republicans have accused President Joe Biden’s family of amassing over $10 million through dubious business ventures during his tenure as vice president.
The committee alleges that the president’s son Hunter Biden obtained $1 million from a deal with a Romanian tycoon while Joe Biden managed the country’s relations. One of Hunter’s business partners, Rob Walker, reportedly arranged the transaction.
According to a comprehensive report released by committee Republicans, Walker started receiving payments from Gabriel Popoviciu, the Romanian tycoon, shortly after Joe Biden hosted Romanian President Klaus Iohannis at the White House in 2015. From November 2015 to May 2017, Popoviciu’s Cyprus-based company, Bladon Enterprises, paid over $3 million to Walker’s private firm.
The Republicans argue that after collecting the funds from Bladon, Walker’s company transferred more than $1 million into accounts owned by Hunter Biden, Hallie Biden (Hunter’s sister-in-law), and James Gilliar (another of Hunter’s business partners). The committee claims this pattern resembles a prior business arrangement between Hunter Biden, Walker, and a Chinese energy company.
Read: President Joe Biden Defends Son Hunter as Prosecutors Near Decision on Charges
The Oversight Committee Chair, James Comer, asserts that the Romanian funds were part of over $10 million received by Hunter Biden, his family, and business associates through dealings with foreign entities in China, Ukraine, and elsewhere in 2009 and 2017, during Joe Biden’s vice presidency. Comer stated in a press conference, “Hunter Biden and his associates pursued business in countries that directly correlate with Joe Biden’s work as vice president. This is not normal, and it is not ethical.”
Despite these accusations, the Republicans have not provided evidence that Joe Biden directly profited from or knew of the business transactions and money transfers. They argue, however, that he must have been aware of the companies his son and associates established for conducting business.
Republican Representative Byron Reynolds remarked, “Nobody in this room can logically sit here and say that the president of the United States had no idea that these companies were being formed while he was vice president of the United States.”
Biden has consistently denied wrongdoing concerning his son’s ventures and defended Hunter’s business practices. “My son has done nothing wrong. I trust him. I have faith in him,” he stated last week.
