Special Counsel David Weiss appears focused on investigating Hunter Biden for tax violations in California with subpoenas issued for James Biden via a Los Angeles grand jury.
People familiar with the probe told CNN:
- James Biden and a former associate of Hunter Biden are “among the individuals ” who received a subpoena in recent weeks.
- It is unclear “if investigators are looking at anything beyond tax matters,” such as Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) violations.
- It is unclear if any witnesses appeared in person before the grand jury.
The reported launch of a Los Angeles grand jury raises a question of timing. The probe into Hunter Biden began five years ago. The report also confirms Weiss’s previous statements that his probe remained ongoing.
Weiss said in July during Hunter Biden’s “sweetheart” plea deal hearing that he would not rule out potentially charging Hunter Biden for tax and FARA violations. The defunct plea bargain would have afforded the president’s son an opportunity to plead guilty for not paying taxes on more than $1.5 million in income in 2017 and 2018, giving probation rather than jail time.
Weiss later indicted Hunter Biden on three gun violations.
IRS whistleblowers contend the president’s Justice Department twice prevented Weiss from bringing stronger charges against Hunter Biden in separate jurisdictions and that political influence impacted the investigation. In June, the New York Times confirmed that the DOJ prevented Weiss from bringing charges against Hunter in D.C. and California.
RELATED — IRS Whistleblower: DOJ Intervened to Slow-Walk Hunter Probe to “Benefit” Him
Lawmakers said Weiss refused to answer many questions about the probe behind closed doors on Capital Hill in October. This included questioning an incident involving U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada of California, who told Congress he did not want to partner with Weiss to investigate Hunter Biden in his district.
Weiss maintained that “[at] no time was I blocked, or otherwise prevented from pursuing charges or taking the steps necessary in the investigation by other United States Attorneys, the Tax Division or anyone else at the Department of Justice.”
Republicans remain unconvinced.
“The important thing is that he has no answers for why he would offer a misdemeanor plea bargain with no jail time to someone who committed felonies and exclude all unknown or yet-to-be-investigated crimes,” Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) said. “It’s that lack of explanation that leads us to all the other questions of whether he was influenced by others or in consultation with others.”
Follow Wendell Husebø on “X” @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.