A Reuters/Ipsos poll indicated that half of Americans believe US President Joe Biden‘s son, Hunter Biden, received preferential treatment from prosecutors who reached a bargain that allowed the younger Biden to plead guilty to tax charges but avoid a gun-related conviction.
The two-day poll, which ended on Wednesday, found that Americans were divided along partisan lines on the matter, with 75% of Republicans seeing preferential treatment compared to 33% of Democrats. The majority of respondents said the lawsuit would not influence their decision to vote for the older Biden in his re-election bid next year.
Hunter Biden, 53, has agreed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges of willfully failing to pay income taxes and to enter into an agreement that could prevent a conviction on a gun-related charge, according to US Attorney David Weiss, a federal prosecutor appointed by Republican former President Donald Trump.
Hunter Biden faces charges
Trump and his Republican allies claimed that Biden’s son received preferential treatment as a result of the plea agreement. To prevent the impression of interference in politically sensitive investigations, Biden asked a few Trump-appointed prosecutors to stay on after he took office in January 2021.
Hunter Biden has worked as a lobbyist, lawyer, foreign company consultant, investment banker, and artist, and has openly discussed his battles with substance misuse. According to a court filing on Wednesday, he will make his first appearance in federal court in Delaware on July 26. According to court documents, Hunter Biden earned more than $1.5 million in taxable income in 2017 and 2018 but did not pay income taxes despite owing more than $100,000.
He is also charged with illegally possessing a handgun from approximately October 12 to October 23, 2018, while using and addicted to a controlled substance. He entered a pretrial diversion agreement for that case, which is an alternative to prosecution that is occasionally used to allow defendants to avoid prison time or a criminal conviction. The Reuters/Ipsos poll surveyed 1,004 US adults nationwide and has a credibility interval, a measure of precision, of about 4 percentage points.