Aide: Biden won’t talk about son Hunter with AG candidates

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming press secretary said Sunday that Biden would not discuss the investigation of his son with any prospective candidates for attorney general.

A federal investigation into the finances of Biden’s son, Hunter, will likely be a major point of contention during Senate confirmation hearings for Biden’s nominee to lead the Justice Department. Some Republicans are already calling for the appointment of a special counsel to deter the role of politics in an investigation.

Biden spokeswoman Jen Psaki told “Fox News Sunday” that Biden is looking for somebody who is at “the highest level of integrity” to oversee the Justice Department.

“And that person, whomever it is, will be overseeing whatever investigations are happening at the Department of Justice,” she said.

Psaki also said the topic of Hunter Biden would not come up in interviews. “He will not be discussing it with anyone he is considering for the role and he will not be discussing it with a future attorney general,” she said. “It will be up to the purview of a future attorney general in his administration to determine how to handle any investigation.”

The president-elect himself is not a subject of the investigation.

Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., and Merrick Garland, a federal appeals court judge, have emerged as the leading contenders to serve as attorney general, The Associated Press has learned. But dynamics could shift, as any Biden choice now will be scrutinized for any perceived loyalty to the president-elect and bias in any investigation of his son.