Fox News has been slammed for apparently trying to vilify President Joe Biden over a private voicemail message he allegedly sent to Hunter Biden during a difficult phase in his son’s battle with substance abuse.
Sean Hannity on Monday aired the 2018 voicemail, obtained by the Daily Mail, in which Joe Biden says to his son: “It’s Dad. I called to tell you I love you. I love you more than the whole world, pal. You gotta get some help. I know you don’t know what to do. I don’t either.”
“It’s actually sad,” Hannity said of the message. “Now that voicemail reportedly came at the exact same time Hunter lied on a gun application to buy a handgun.”
“By the way, replace the name Biden with Trump and imagine how the mob and the media would be covering all of this,” Hannity added. “Instead, they’d rather perpetuate one hoax after another, just like they did with the dirty Steele dossier.”
Hunter Biden is under federal investigation and could face charges over tax crimes and making a false statement while buying a gun, The Washington Post reported last week. According to the Daily Mail, the voicemail was sent on Oct. 15, 2018, three days after the alleged gun purchase.
Hunter Biden later wrote in his book about his lifelong struggle with addiction and said he used drugs heavily in 2018.
There has been no evidence to suggest Joe Biden was aware of the gun purchase. The president ― who lost his first wife and daughter in a car crash and his son Beau in 2015 to brain cancer ― stood by Hunter throughout his battle with drug addiction and said he was “proud of him” for overcoming it.
Commenters weren’t sure what point Fox News thought it was making by sharing the private message, beyond showcasing a father’s love and concern for his child.