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How About Hunter? Justice Department Adds FARA Charge to Menendez Prosecution
14 Oct 2023 ~~ By Jonathan Turley
Below is my column in the New York Post on issuance of superseding indictments for Sen. Bob Menendez, his wife, and associates to include new charges related to his alleged work as unregistered foreign agents. The new charges not only highlight the alleged corrupt practices of Sen. Menendez, but also the absence of such charges for Hunter Biden.
Here is the column:
The Justice Department this week hit Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) with a superseding indictment including a new but all-too-familiar charge: being an unregistered foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
I cannot recall another sitting member of Congress being criminally charged as a foreign agent.
Yet even if this is the first such case, the charge has been freely used by the Justice Department in all but one case: Hunter Biden.
The indictment accuses Menendez of being a foreign agent on behalf of Egypt.
Also charged under the law is Menendez’s wife, Nadine, and Egyptian American businessman Wael Hana.
~Snip~
Indeed, when Menendez was charged, I wrote about the striking similarities in the cases, including the gifts and benefits showered on both men.
They remain similar in every way except the charges.
FARA covers anyone acting as “agent of a foreign principal,” including but not limited to (1) attempting to influence federal officials or the public on domestic or foreign policy or the political or public interests in favor of a foreign country; (2) collecting or disbursing money and or other things of value within the United States; or (3) representing the interests of the foreign principal before U.S. Government officials or agencies.
It is sweeping. So is the definition of what a “foreign principal” encompasses, including “a foreign government, a foreign political party, any person outside the United States (except U.S. citizens who are domiciled within the United States), and any entity organized under the laws of a foreign country or having its principal place of business in a foreign country.”
It is easy to see why FARA charges have been quickly brought in cases ranging from Manafort to Menendez. It is less clear why such charges remains strikingly absent from the Hunter case.
~Snip~
Throughout his open influence-peddling, emails show Hunter was fully aware of the risk of being charged under FARA.
The problem with FARA is that it would require the Bidens to publicly acknowledge their work as foreign agents and, by extension, their massive influence-peddling operation.
In one message, Hunter addressed his work for the Chinese CEFC energy company and warned:
“No matter what it will need to be a US company at some level in order for us to make bids on federal and state funded projects. Also We [sic] don’t want to have to register as foreign agents under the FCPA which is much more expansive than people who should know choose not to know. James has very particular opinions about this so I would ask him about the foreign entity.”
“James” is his uncle Jim Biden, who has also been regularly accused of corrupt influence-peddling tied to Joe Biden.
~Snip~
For many, the question is not whether Hunter has acted as an agent of foreign principals but whether the Justice Department is acting as an agent of the principal Biden.
Commentary:
Turley nails definitely it on this one. For some reason Biden's DoJ wants to get rid of Menendez. He is somehow now a threat to them. So FARA charges are being used. But not against Hunter Biden.
Like Manafort, Menendez and his wife have been indicted for FARA violations yet Hunter and his Rosemont partners ans Uncle James Biden have skated free.
Something smells and it's not cheese or fish, it's corruption of this administration, DoJ and FBI. Anyone who believes that Menendez is the only Senator with gold bars stashed away or is a pedophile was born yesterday.
Prosecuting Menendez is the screen tp protect Hunter, James and the "Big Guy". The Dems can say, “See"!. We prosecute Democrat miscreants, too! and if Hunter had committed those crimes you're all lying about we would prosecute him fully!”
