Trump's best hope to cool down Epstein fury may be for Hunter Biden to keep talking
No, it wasn't a laptop this time. Instead, it came in the form of two podcast interviews in which a fiery Biden went on expletive-laden tirades against everyone from George Clooney to the president of El Salvador while swinging at his father's political enemies.
The former president's son, apparently unsatisfied with damaging his father's bid for re-election, may now be doing the same to his post-presidential reputation. The 55-year-old Biden calmly explained the process for cooking crack cocaine before devolving into angry rants against people who questioned his family's judgment.
Biden appeared for an interview with former All Gas No Brakes host Andrew Callaghan, sitting down for three hours and riffing on a wide range of topics, but centering a good amount of focus on the downfall of the Biden campaign in 2024.
He verbally attacked Democrats for abandoning his father. He argued the disunity among voters over Joe Biden's withdrawal was the leading factor that caused millions to stay home, not the general disgust voters showed towards a party that seemingly covered up Biden's decline, or the political consequences of the U.S.-supported carnage in Gaza.
Regarding Biden's performance at a June debate with Trump, where he appeared confused and unable to finish sentences at times, his son chalked up to the following revelation: the president's doctors had him on Ambien.
'He's 81 years old. He's tired as s**t. They give him Ambien to be able to sleep. He gets up on stage and he looks like he's a deer in the headlights. And it feeds into f*****g story that anybody wants to tell.'
After personally attacking Pod Save America co-hosts and George Clooney, it became clear: this was an airing of grievances by Hunter.
Kamala Harris, his father's former running mate, and the progressive wing that sacrificed some of their credibility with their base, were the only Democrats spared his wrath. The centrist wing of the party he labeled weak-kneed cowards and backstabbers.
It begs the question, then: why is Hunter Biden making multiple podcast appearances and stirring up negative headlines for Democrats at a time when President Donald Trump and his administration are under fire from MAGA over the release of files relating to Jeffrey Epstein?
Monday's press tour by the former first son was ill-timed, though it didn't fully break through the multi-day news cycle surrounding Epstein.
On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported the contents of a birthday card Ghislaine Maxwell allegedly compiled for Epstein in 2003. Trump has strongly denied that he ever wrote anything for the card and has sued the outlet and Rupert Murdoch over the report.
The Epstein coverage has continued this week, but if there's anyone with the power to provide a distraction, it's Hunter Biden furiously threatening to invade El Salvador while discussing his former crack habits.
His mere presence in the news cycle is also a reminder of his father's pardon. Biden carried on through much of 2024 vowing not to let his son escape justice on tax and gun charges, even as there were no plans by the DoJ to charge him for his documented drug abuse.
That promise fell apart, and Hunter is now free and unburdened to hamstring those he perceives as having betrayed his family at the worst possible time.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
13 minutes ago
- BBC News
Evacuations for Japan and US as major earthquake off Russia trigger widespread tsunami warnings
Authorities don begin evacuate pipo for Japan, Hawaii and some parts of di US West Coast as magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula bin trigger tsunami warnings across di Pacific Ocean. Dem report Tsunami waves wey dey as high as 3-4 metres (10-13 feet) for Kamchatka while 30cm (12in) waves don hit one city for Hokkaido, northern Japan. Hawaii Govnor Josh Green don ask pipo to follow evacuation orders and stay calm while US President Donald Trump advise Americans to dey on alert for tsunami warnings. Several pipo don injure for Kamchatka sake of di earthquake and strong aftershocks dey expected, TASS news agency report. Authorities don also issue Tsunami alerts of varying levels for parts of China, di Philippines, Indonesia, Guam, Peru and di Galapagos Islands off Ecuador. Japanese authorities ask nearly 2 million pipo to evacuate Japanese authorities don ask more dan 1.9 million pipo to evacuate. Around 10,500 of dis pipo dey for Hokkaido, wia local media footage show pipo dey gada ontop rooftop. Some pipo also gada for one observatory wey overlook di beach for Chiba south of Tokyo. Authorities don continue to urge residents on Japan east coast to evacuate to higher ground. Dozens of waves don dey observed across Japan Pacific coast. Evacuation warnings don span hundreds of kilometres/miles along im pacific coast - from Hokkaido for di north to Wakayama prefecture for di south. Di Meteorological agency say tsunami waves fit reach up to 3 metres high. Meanwhile, Russia Sakhalin region don declare a state of emergency for di northern Kuril Islands, di same part of di kontri wia video of tsunami waves for port town bin emerge. Mayor Alexander Ovsyannikov say "evrione" for dat area don dey evacuated. "Enough time bin dey, a whole hour. So evrione bin dey evacuated, all di pipo dey for di tsunami safety zone," e tok, AFP report.
Reuters
43 minutes ago
- Reuters
Thailand accuses Cambodia of second ceasefire violation in two days
BANGKOK, July 30 (Reuters) - Thailand's military accused Cambodian forces on Wednesday of breaching a ceasefire agreement at three separate locations along the disputed border, warning that continued aggression could compel Thai forces to respond more decisively. The allegations come less than two days after both governments agreed to a ceasefire brokered in Malaysia, which came into effect at midnight on Monday, aimed to stop fighting and prevent escalation of their deadliest conflict in more than a decade following five days of intense fighting that has killed at least 43 people and displaced over 300,000 civilians on either side. The truce came after a sustained push from Malaysian Premier Anwar Ibrahim and U.S. President Donald Trump, with the latter warning Thai and Cambodian leaders that if fighting continued. Thailand and Cambodia face a tariff of 36% on their goods in the U.S., their biggest export market, unless a reduction can be negotiated. After the ceasefire deal was reached, Trump said he had spoken to both leaders and instructed his trade team to tariff talks. On Wednesday, Thailand said Cambodian forces fired on positions in northeastern Thailand's Sisaket province on Cambodia's northern border. "Cambodian forces used small arms and grenade launchers, prompting Thailand to respond in self-defence," Thai army spokesman Major-General Winthai Suvaree told reporters. "This was the second incident since the agreement and reflects a behaviour that does not respect agreements, destroys de-escalation efforts and hampers trust between the two countries." Cambodia rejected the allegations, saying it was committed to the ceasefire and called for observers. "Cambodia strongly rejects the ceasefire accusations as false, misleading and harmful to the fragile trust-building process," Cambodian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Chum Sounry told reporters at a press conference, adding the government supports a monitoring mechanism and independent observation. The ceasefire, which also agreed to halt troop movement, paves the way for a high-level military meeting that includes defence ministers on August 4 in Cambodia. There have been no reports of any exchange of heavy artillery fire but also no reports of troop withdrawals by either side.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Tariffs: Trump says India might face up to 25% duties if deal not agreed
India could face tariffs as high as 25% if it fails to finalise a trade deal with the US this week, President Donald Trump has said. "Yeah, I think so," he told reporters on Tuesday when asked whether Delhi would face higher tariffs in the absence of an agreement. The US has set a 1 August deadline for India and several other countries to either reach a trade agreement or face increased and American officials have been negotiating a trade deal for the past few months, but officials have alternated between sounding optimistic and cautious about when it will be announced. When asked about what he expected from a potential deal with India, Trump said: "We're going to see. India has been a good friend, but India has charged basically more tariffs than almost any other country". "But now I'm in charge, and you just can't do that," he BBC has reached out to India's commerce ministry for a are taxes charged on goods imported from other countries. The US president has repeatedly taken aim at India's high tariffs, branding it a "tariff king" and a "big abuser" of trade ties. Trump has not yet sent a letter to India setting a new tariff rate - as he has with more than a dozen other trading partners. Back in April, Trump had announced tariffs of up to 27% on Indian goods, which was later then, both sides have been racing to negotiate an agreement, with officials sometimes sounding positive and at other times, measured."We continue to speak with our Indian counterparts. We've always had very constructive discussions with them," US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said earlier this also acknowledged that although he had earlier said a deal with India might be "imminent", it needed to be understood that Delhi's trade policy has been "protectionist for a very long time" and has been "premised on strongly protecting their domestic market". Greer added that Trump has been focused on securing deals that substantially open other markets to the and dairy are among the key sticking points for both years, Washington has pushed for greater access to India's farm sector, seeing it as a major untapped market. But India has fiercely protected it, citing food security, livelihoods and the interests of millions of small week, Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told CNBC that the agriculture sector is sensitive for India and that it will make sure that farmers' interests are "well protected". Goyal also told news agencies that India remains "optimistic" about striking a deal with Washington to Reuters, he said that India was making "fantastic progress" in talks with the US and that he hoped they were able to "conclude a very consequential partnership". Until recently, the US was India's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching $190bn in 2024. Trump and Modi have set a target to more than double this figure to $ has already reduced tariffs on a range of goods - including Bourbon whiskey and motorcycles - but the US continues to run a $45bn (£33bn) trade deficit with India, which Trump is keen to BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.
