On Friday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Hunter Biden attorney Abbe Lowell said that President Joe Biden did talk to his son on the phone at business meetings, but he “speaks to his children and his grandchildren frequently, almost every day, in some cases.” And his conversations were just chitchat about things like the weather. Lowell also argued that Hunter Biden “is not the person who’s simply out there having people write checks for no reason. He’s a capable, educated, experienced person.” But people have been using their connections and names for opportunities for a long time, “that’s what happens. And the most important point is that it’s not improper and it’s not illegal.”

Co-host Joe Scarborough asked, “Is Devon Archer correct that Joe Biden got on the phone in some of these meetings with Hunter Biden and the business associates overseas?”

Lowell responded, “I think the better answer to that question is everybody I think now knows that President Biden speaks to his children and his grandchildren frequently, almost every day, in some cases. And I don’t think it’s unusual, whether it’s at a family gathering or perhaps when Hunter was at a business meeting, that that would happen. And if there was any conversation, as is Mr. Archer’s point, it was like chitchat friendly, like how’s the weather?”

Later, Scarborough asked, “I think Americans are asking, what did Hunter Biden think he was getting that $7 million for? Why would he be getting paid so much money?”

Lowell responded, “Alright, well, stop with your $7 million and talk about how many years that Hunter has been in business and what happened in each of those specific years. When you say it that way, people think that somebody just sent him a check for $7 million on April 1 –.”

Scarborough then cut in to ask, “No, but help me out here, again — and I’m glad you’re here to actually break this down — obviously, Jared raised his $3 billion very quickly. We have numbers being thrown around. The $7 million is actually not what Comer’s saying. Comer has a much higher, much more elevated number. I guess The Washington Post reported it was $7 million. What’s the $7 million over and how many countries did it come from?”

Lowell answered, “Well, okay, so, first of all, it’s much more complicated than to say it comes from countries. There are joint ventures between American entities, and, in one or two occasions, a potential foreign entity to create the possibility of jobs and energy in the United States. That’s too complicated to try to explain, but I can answer the question that you asked in the following way: Over the time that he was in business — this is, again, something that people ought to pay attention to — Hunter Biden went to Georgetown University, went to Yale Law School, was on the board of directors of a bank, was on the board of directors of Amtrak, is somebody who went and worked in an international law firm. People seem to forget that this is not the person who’s simply out there having people write checks for no reason. He’s a capable, educated, experienced person.”

Lowell continued, “Now, if Congress wants to start saying, wait, does he get opportunities because his last name is Biden? They should look to themselves. Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-WV) wife is on a commission in West Virginia where Congress had provided an enormous amount of funds. There is Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), who has a spouse that works in the consulting business. If you start dissecting people who have the ability to use their connections and their name in order to get an opportunity, then, okay, but then, what’s good for the goose, is good for the gander, Congress should look at their own. People have been doing this for millennia. Maybe it’s not fair to us who don’t have the name, but that’s what happens. And the most important point is that it’s not improper and it’s not illegal. And the thing that’s different — and you just said it again — is that Hunter Biden has never been in a family business like the Trump kids and he’s never acted as an adviser to the president and the White House, using both of those in order to then conduct business. That’s a fundamental difference that also ought to be remembered.”

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