Hunter Biden accuses ‘partisan and craven factions’ of exploiting drug addiction

Hunter Biden claimed Thursday that Republicans and right-wing media have weaponized his yearslong battle with drug and alcohol addiction to promote inaccurate information about his father and destroy his reputation.

The first son wrote in a rare op-ed published in USA Today that President Joe Biden has become the target of a “sustained disinformation campaign” as Republicans conduct an impeachment inquiry into allegations Joe Biden abused his authority for personal profit when he was vice president.

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“My struggles and my mistakes have been fodder for a vile and sustained disinformation campaign against him, and an all-out annihilation of my reputation,” Hunter Biden wrote.

Republicans have accused Joe Biden of partaking in an influence-peddling scheme with his son. While Joe Biden was vice president and overseeing foreign policy, Hunter Biden traveled the world engaging in lucrative foreign business deals and wielding his family name. The GOP has not at this stage proven Joe Biden committed impeachable offenses but is still in the process of vetting claims of bribery and abuse of power.

Hunter Biden, who himself is under investigation by the Department of Justice for tax crimes, wrote that the “high-pitched” congressional inquiry focusing on him and his family was “fruitless.”

(AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

The op-ed is the latest instance in recent months of the first son going on offense in the face of intensifying scrutiny of his business ventures.

In September, Hunter Biden went on a lawsuit spree, filing complaints against a pair of IRS whistleblowers for allegedly illegally revealing his private tax information and complaints against former Trump aide Garrett Ziegler and former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani over allegations they hacked his computer data.

The data, which Hunter Biden alleged in the lawsuits was manipulated, included numerous provocative photos and videos of the first son that have since circulated online and in the media.

Regardless, Hunter Biden remains legally vulnerable while the DOJ continues to investigate him and while lawmakers attempt to track how millions of dollars in income was moved among Biden family members and their affiliated companies over the past decade.

The younger Biden’s most high-profile endeavor involves the profitable position he took on the board of a Ukrainian energy company in May 2014, one year before his brother died and his addiction problems escalated, according to his memoir.

Despite the unanswered legal questions about his well-documented business pursuits and the fact that they began before he was in the throes of addiction, Hunter Biden maintained in the op-ed that his addiction and recovery process have been exploited.

He condemned Fox News and the New York Post for their outsize media coverage of him and tore into “partisan and craven factions” for their “weaponization” and “demonization” of his struggles. He specifically named Giuliani, former Trump aides Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon, and former Bannon aide Guo Wengui.

“It is already a near-impossible decision for addicts to get sober, and the avalanche of negativity and assault of my personal privacy may only make it harder for those considering it,” Hunter Biden wrote.

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He also said he is “accountable” for his “choices and mistakes” and said he does not see himself as a victim.

He noted he has been sober for more than four years.