Exclusive photos from Fox News Digital show Hunter Biden in Los Angeles while his father, President Joe Biden, remains holed up on the other side of the country, fighting to save his legacy.
The younger Biden, who has reportedly been closely advising his father as a chorus of key Democrats call for him to end his reelection bid, was seen on Friday shopping and leaving the home of “Sugar Bro” Kevin Morris, the entertainment lawyer who bankrolled his defense in a recent criminal trial.
President Biden has reportedly relied heavily on his son, a Yale Law School graduate, and his wife, first lady Jill Biden, as he attempts to defend himself against claims that he is not mentally prepared to serve another four years as president. The criticism reached a fever pitch following his disastrous performance in the June 27 debate against former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.
The president will spend the weekend at his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
Hunter Biden began attending meetings between his father and close White House staff just a week after the debate, and a White House source told NBC at the time that the sudden presence caused confusion and led many to ask, “What the hell is going on?”
Biden appeared to confide in his son not only in those meetings but also in phone calls, the sources said.
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Hunter Biden leaves a supermarket as Secret Service holds the door open for him in Los Angeles, Calif., Friday, July 19, 2024. Hunter Biden remains in Los Angeles while his father, President Joe Biden, is in Delaware amid growing calls for him to drop out of the 2024 race. (Toby Canham for Fox News Digital)
Hunter Biden was also reported to be one of the biggest advocates for his father to stay in the race during a meeting at Camp David following the president's poor debate performance, with some critics arguing that the president's use of his son as a senior adviser has become a conflict of interest.
Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., responded to Hunter Biden's participation in these high-level meetings by labeling him “a walking threat to national security.”
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Hunter Biden leaves Kevin Morris' home as Secret Service holds the car door open in Los Angeles, Calif., Friday, July 19, 2024. Hunter Biden remains in Los Angeles while his father, President Joe Biden, is in Delaware amid growing calls for him to drop out of the 2024 election race. (Toby Canham for Fox News Digital)
Some have alleged that Hunter Biden is seeking a pardon from his father for two cases filed against him in Delaware and California, even seeking to request that the cases be dismissed in the same manner as those involving former President Trump.
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General view of Secret Service team waiting outside Kevin Morris' home during Hunter Biden's visit, Los Angeles, California, Friday, July 19, 2024. Hunter Biden remains in Los Angeles while his father, President Joe Biden, is in Delaware amid growing calls for him to drop out of the 2024 election race. (Toby Canham for Fox News Digital)
His lawyers are asking for both federal cases to be dismissed, arguing that special prosecutor David Weiss was illegally appointed. Hunger Biden was convicted last month of three felony counts related to a 2018 gun purchase, and a case in California over alleged federal tax crimes is ongoing.
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“It's just a massive interest, pure and simple, in keeping his father president so he can pardon not just Hunter, but Joe and the rest of the family for the crimes they committed, and probably Merrick Garland as well, for his role in the cover-up,” Mike Howell, executive director of the Heritage Foundation's Oversight Project, told Fox News Digital earlier this month.
Hunter Biden was found guilty of all charges in the Delaware gun case, including charges of making a false statement in the purchase of a gun, making a false statement relating to information required to be maintained by a federally licensed gun dealer, and possession of a gun by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.
Fox News Digital's Michael Lee and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
