Hunter Biden surely must cause Joe Biden an awful lot of stress, which has taken an obvious toll on the president’s mental health in recent years. We made the case before the 2020 election that Biden was unfit for office because of his poor cognitive state. Three years of stress from a job that ages even much younger men, even with all of Joe’s vacations and early-to-bed days, on top of the constant flow of scandalous information about Hunter have left their mark.

Jill Biden should be ashamed of herself for allowing the elder abuse to continue. We almost feel sorry for Ole Scranton Joe.

And yet…

Biden is a lying narcissist of the worst sort, and he’s been in cahoots with his son in a lucrative influence-peddling operation that violated the trust of the American people, even if many are too dullard to see it.

So when Hunter Biden crashes a congressional hearing whose purpose is to consider holding him in contempt for not showing up to an earlier closed-door congressional deposition, we’re reminded why we so thoroughly detest this awful president, his lousy administration, and his crummy family.

Last month, House Republicans summoned Hunter to Capitol Hill to answer questions about his business dealings. Sure, they’d be uncomfortable questions and Hunter wouldn’t have enjoyed the hot seat. But instead of facing it like a man, his lawyers tried to negotiate the conditions under which he might deign to appear. When Republicans rightly dismissed that attempt, Hunter showed up on the steps outside the Capitol to rant about how unfair the whole thing is and pretend like he was just trying to comply.

“I’m here to testify at a public hearing today to answer any of the committee’s legitimate questions,” he taunted. “What are they afraid of? I’m here. I’m ready.” And then he skipped the hearing entirely.

Yesterday, when the House Oversight Committee met to mark up a criminal contempt resolution, Hunter decided to crash the party. He sauntered into the middle of the hearing, stayed for a few minutes, and theatrically left the moment Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene started speaking.

Classy guy, that Hunter Biden. At least he was wearing pants.

On his way out of the hearing, Hunter got exactly the kinds of questions a corrupt drug addict deserved. “Why did you put your dad on speakerphone with your business partners if he had no involvement in your business?” “What kind of crack do you normally smoke, Mr. Biden?” “Are you on crack today?”

REPORTER TO HUNTER: “What kind of crack do you normally smoke Mr. Biden?!” 🤣 pic.twitter.com/L2sFJMPWwE

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) January 10, 2024

As for Joe Biden, he said defying congressional subpoenas is a crime. “I hope that the committee goes after them and holds them accountable criminally,” he said. Except that was in reference to January 6 witnesses, and we all know the two-tiered justice so perfectly exhibited by that fiasco.

After Hunter the Clown folded up his circus tents and left, Republicans on the Oversight Committee proceeded to hold him in contempt, as did the Judiciary Committee in a separate effort. The committees will send the resolutions to the entire House in hopes of referring him to the Justice Department for prosecution. We’re sure Attorney General Merrick Garland will get right on that. After all, it would only be fair. Steve Bannon was sentenced to four months in prison for the same crime and Peter Navarro will be sentenced later this month. Assist Donald Trump, go to jail. Pay the “big guy,” walk free.

That right there, of course, is why Hunter felt free to very publicly defy Congress — twice. His dad’s got his back, and there’s little anyone can do about it.

“Look, the two-tiered justice ship has sailed,” lamented former federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy. “Whatever political damage it can do to Biden’s re-election bid, it has already done.”

Meanwhile, Hunter flew to Los Angeles, where he’s in court today facing tax charges. He allegedly failed to pay taxes on time and claimed illegitimate deductions for things like pornography and membership to a sex club. Maybe he thought that would fly because he sired a child with a stripper.

As to the broader issue, a defiant Hunter Biden reiterated Wednesday, “There is no evidence to support the allegations that my father was financially involved in my business because it did not happen.” No, there is evidence, though it’s been hard to find because of the 20 or so shell companies Hunter and his family members set up to launder the money.

Remember, circus distractions aside, this has always been about Joe Biden.