The embattled son of former Vice President Biden, Hunter Biden, admitted in an ABC News interview that he only received high-paying positions on the boards of foreign companies because of his proximity to power in Washington.
After discussing the various high-paying assignments he’s enjoyed, Hunter Biden said it’s “impossible” for him to have received these jobs were it not for his father.
“It is impossible for me to be on any of the boards that I just mentioned without saying that I’m the son of the vice president of the United States,” Hunter told ABC News.
ABC News followed up: “If your last name wasn’t Biden, do you think you would have been asked to be on the board or Burisma?”
“I don’t know, I don’t know, probably not,” Biden admitted. “I don’t think that there’s a lot of things that would have happened in my life if my last name wasn’t Biden.”
Hunter Biden nonetheless claimed he was qualified to serve the board of a Ukranian natural gas company earning $60,000/month despite having no business experience in Ukraine or with natural gas.
Asked to explain his qualifications, Biden said: “Well, I was vice chairman of the board of Amtrak for five years, I was the chairman of the board of the U.N. World Food Program. I was a lawyer for Boies Schiller Flexner, one of the most prestigious law firms in the world.”
Despite insisting it’s a “ridiculous conspiracy theory” there is any unethical about his role on a Ukranian gas company, Biden said he’s decided to step down from the company:
ROBACH: “Why did you leave the board in April?”
H. BIDEN: “It’s a five-year term.”
ROBACH: “And you chose not to continue?”
H. BIDEN: “I chose not to, yeah.”
ROBACH: “Why?”
H. BIDEN: “I think it’s pretty obvious why.”
ROBACH: “This is your opportunity to say why.
H. BIDEN: “Because this is what becomes a distraction, because I have to sit here and answer these questions. So that’s why I committed that I won’t serve on any boards or I won’t work directly for any foreign entities when my dad becomes president.”
Biden went on to say he wishes he used better “judgment” before accepting this position.
ROBACH: “I think people at home are thinking how could that not have crossed your mind. You wouldn’t have felt just a little bit in your gut like, ‘Maybe this isn’t a good idea to go and sit on the board of this Ukrainian company?’”
H. BIDEN: “I just said to you. I said to you in retrospect I wish that my judgment —“
ROBACH: “But at the time you never thought this might not look right?”
H. BIDEN: “You know what? I’m a human. And you know what, did I make a mistake? Well, maybe in the grand scheme of things, yeah, but did I make a mistake based upon some unethical lapse? Absolutely not.”
Hunter also appeared to slip while discussing his father’s role in his business endeavors. After insisting they’ve never discussed them, Biden added, “other than that brief exchange we had,” without elaborating.