OPINION:
In the fifth decade of his political career in Washington, President Biden rebranded himself as a harmless, old coot.
Uncle Joe. Lunch Bucket Joe. Scranton Joe.
Of course, nobody calls him any of these names — except Mr. Biden himself when Uncle Joe is arguing with Lunch Bucket Joe about where he misplaced his ham and cheese sandwich. But certainly, it has been a pretty successful political rebranding for a guy who has been in the federal government since the KKK was openly welcome in the Democratic Party, and Republicans opposed government spending.
Uncle Joe was so successful as an old dog learning new tricks that he got tapped to be vice president.
He served as an old, white-haired D.C. barnacle to balance out all that Hope and Change. And then, when Hope and Change gave way to Make America Great Again, the political media circled around Uncle Joe and lionized him in his quest for the White House.
But today, as prosecutors consider federal charges against his son, it is probably wise to remember who Mr. Biden really was before he became “Uncle Joe.” The hard, sad truth is that Mr. Biden has always been a dishonest, despicable man — both in his private life and publicly.
Before becoming vice president, Mr. Biden was mainly known around Washington as an insufferable senator with verbal diarrhea and a loose grip on the truth. One of his many quests for the White House ended after he was caught plagiarizing speeches.
However, Mr. Biden’s profound dishonesty is not confined to just politics. He is willing to lie about anything, even the most sacred aspects of his life.
When he was a young man, Mr. Biden’s life was shattered after his wife and daughter were killed in an automobile accident. Both his young sons, Beau and Hunter, were injured but survived. The accident, understandably, came to define Mr. Biden.
But Mr. Biden’s lust for political power and fame overcame the dignity of his grief. In time, he began using his dead wife and daughter to burnish his political career — much as he has more recently used his son Beau’s death to push his various political agendas.
Mr. Biden claimed on the campaign trail for years that a drunk driver killed his wife and daughter. In fact, not only was the driver of the tractor-trailer not drunk, the accident was not his fault. The man’s family begged Mr. Biden to stop slandering the man, but Mr. Biden had elections to win.
Imagine growing up with a self-absorbed father so detached from reality and the truth. Imagine growing up in a home with a man so clearly possessed by politics, power and fame that he would place his political career ahead of the sanctity of his family.
To say Mr. Biden was a terrible father is a comical understatement at this point. Just take a look at his son Hunter’s laptop. Actually, please don’t. You will want to carve your eyeballs out of their sockets with a rusty spoon.
Anyone can raise a bad son. What is unusual about the depths of Hunter Biden’s depravity is how much his father is endlessly entwined in all of the bribery scams, money-grubbing and hopeless addiction contained on Hunter’s laptop.
Hunter today stands as a monument of Mr. Biden as a father.
No private family grief is above politics for Mr. Biden, just as no shred of honor is too precious to sell to the highest bidder.
However, Mr. Biden’s torment of his family does not end with his own children.
Three years ago, Hunter had a tryst with a stripper in D.C., while, naturally, he was dating his dead brother’s widow.
The tryst produced a child, which Hunter refused to acknowledge until a 2019 paternity suit confirmed he was, in fact, the father. Only then did Hunter agree to take responsibility for his daughter — if at an arm’s length.
It is hard to know what is worse: a deadbeat dad or a deadbeat granddad. Sadly, the child is probably better off.
• Charles Hurt is the opinion editor at the Washington Times.
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