Cheryl K Chumley
James Rosen, White House correspondent for Newsmax TV, asked National Security Council spokesman John Kirby in a recent presser about the curious WhatsApp message from Hunter Biden to his communist-tied Chinese buddy Henry Zhao that seems to implicate Joe Biden in his son’s scandalous business dealings – specifically, that Joe Biden has lied repeatedly by claiming zero knowledge of his son’s overseas’ dealings – and Kirby ran like a little girl from the podium.
This must be the approved talking point by the Democrats’ war room: When asked about Hunter – gather your skirts and run! ’Cause Kirby’s not the only one doing it.
He was replaced by a dismissive White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre who was then asked the same question Kirby avoided – and she booted, deflected, avoided and then got really ticked; no doubt, even more ticked when other reporters in the White House briefing room wouldn’t let the matter drop.
“Was the president there or not?” asked an off-camera female journalist, following on Rosen’s line of questioning that went unanswered.
“I will refer you to my colleagues. They have addressed this and I will refer you to them,” Jean-Pierre said.
Only – they haven’t.
The White House hasn’t really explained the matter of the WhatsApp message that, if taken at face value, shows Joe Biden being used as a bulldog by his son to threaten communists into paying up, or paying – some unstated price. Saying ‘nothing to see here, folks, go home’ is not the same as an explanation. And they’re not really fooling anyone with this bogus narrative; they’re actually only fueling speculation and non-stop media coverage.
“White House STILL insists Joe was not involved in Hunter’s business dealings as Karine Jean-Pierre is hit with barrage of questions on WhatsApp message to Chinese businessman and his state dinner invitation,” the Daily Mail wrote in a recent headline.
Stonewalling is not the way to go.
The message is too damaging, especially when viewed in simultaneous media cycles as the sweetheart plea Hunter was just granted for felonious tax and gun possession charges that would’ve put the average American behind bars for years. His deal? Misdemeanors and dismissals. Then off to a black-tie White House even for him.
“I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled,” Hunter’s 2017 WhatsApp message to Zhao reportedly reads. “I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled. Tell the director that I would like to resolve this now before it gets out of hand, and now means tonight.”
There’s more.
“And Z,” the message continued, an obvious reference to Zhao, “if I get a call or text from anyone involved in this other than you, Zhang or the chairman, I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction. I am sitting here waiting for the call with my father.”
Nothing to see here, though. Go home.
Influence peddling? Nah. Evidence of Joe Biden’s lies about involvement with his son’s business dealings? Meh. And don’t even bring up any talk of China collusion or communist infiltration of this White House; don’t even go there.
Laughably, Hunter’s attorney, Christopher Clark, is outraged over the whistleblowers who’ve leaked the WhatsApp message. Laughably – because grand jury indictments against Donald Trump have been illegally leaked time and time again, then used by the media, Democrats and Trump haters to convict him of matters that haven’t even traveled the constitutionally judicial route. The difference is, of course, Trump is a Republican who loves America and Hunter Biden is a crackhead who hangs with prostitutes but a Democrat. And that has made all the difference, as Robert Frost might conclude.
“Biased and politically-motivated selective leaks have plagued this matter for years,” Clark said, Fox News reported. “They are not only irresponsible. They are illegal.”
Whah.
Yet another one grabbing his skirts to run like a little girl.
There’s an easy way the White House could put this WhatsApp message and all that means to rest: Answer the questions. Stop ducking and dodging.
President Biden could start by publicly stating whether he was indeed in the room with his son at the time of this WhatsApp message. Americans deserve to know the truth, and his willingness to go on the record, so to speak, to either confirm or deny his presence – so as to confirm or show as lie his long-running insistence of blind eyes, deaf ears of all his son’s business dealings – would clear up a lot of the chatter and perhaps, depending on his answer, perhaps, potentially put a stop to a lot of it.
That he won’t speaks volumes.
It suggests that yes, indeed, he was in the room, as the message indicates, and that yes, indeed, he has been lying all these years – and that yes, indeed, there is much more to the story here that potentially threatens America’s security interests, sovereignty and system of law and justice.
And that is why the White House is behaving like frightened little girls. They understand all too well where this could lead.
Reprinted with author’s permission from The Washington Times.