Hunter Biden transcript reveals plea deal gave immunity against illegal foreign lobbying charges.
Hunter Biden could have received a plea deal that would have granted him wide-ranging immunity from extraordinary crimes such as illegal foreign lobbying and federal tax evasion if a judge had not stepped in, according to transcripts of his court proceedings.
The hearing, in which Biden pleaded "not guilty," was supposed to be a proceeding where the first son pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor tax crimes and a diversion deal for a felony federal gun charge. The agreement would have allowed him to avoid jail time for the gun charge.
However, U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika asked probing questions about the diversion agreement that revealed its true nature.
New transcripts obtained by the Daily Mail reveal that Noreika prodded the president's son about protections the deal would have provided for potential foreign lobbying crimes and more.
The plea deal reportedly consisted of two parts, the "plea agreement" and a "diversion agreement." A clause in the diversion agreement gave the younger Biden blanket immunity for potential charges that could be filed by the Delaware U.S. Attorney's Office. This appeared to include illegal foreign lobbying, felony tax evasion, and other drug charges.
"If you had no immunity from the government, perhaps even a different prosecutor and the government could bring a felony tax evasion charge or drug charges against you, would you still enter the plea agreement and plead guilty to these tax charges?" the judge asked.
"No, your honor," Biden replied.
"Just so I understand," the judge continued. "You would not agree to that plea agreement if you didn't get some immunity from other charges, is that right?"
"Speaking for my client, that's correct, your honor," Biden's attorney said.
The judge described the deal as including "nonstandard terms like the broad immunity" and said she is "not convinced that it is actually a plea."
The transcript also revealed much of Biden's foreign business operations, which included dealings in China, Romania, and of course Ukraine.
"From 2017 to 2019, he served on the board of a Ukrainian energy company and a Chinese private equity fund," Biden's attorney confirmed.
In 2017, Biden made "just under $1 million from a company he formed with the CEO of a Chinese business conglomerate; $666,666 from his domestic business interests; approximately $664,000 from a Chinese infrastructure investment company; $500,000 in director's fees from a Ukrainian energy company; $70,000 relating to a Romanian business; and $48,000 from the multi-national law firm," the transcript stated.
In 2018, Biden took in "$2.6 million in business and consulting fees from the company he formed with the CEO of a Chinese business conglomerate and the Ukrainian energy company."
Court proceedings had also previously revealed the extend of Biden's stints in drug and alcohol rehab. The first son went to rehab facilities six times since 2003, including in one instance where he was confronted by his family and pretended to go to rehab.
Instead he went to a hotel room and "smoked the crack [he'd] tucked away in [his] traveling bag."
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