Staff Reports
Hunter Biden’s new interview on the I’ve Had It podcast landed like a hand grenade in a quiet room. On Jennifer Welch’s show, he said his father’s single biggest mistake as president was appointing former Attorney General Merrick Garland to run the Justice Department. That one line has stirred the usual political pot — and for good reason.
Hunter’s critique: What he actually said
On the podcast, Hunter Biden called the Garland pick “the single greatest mistake of my father’s administration,” then blamed Garland for moving too slowly after the Jan. 6 riot. He told host Jennifer Welch that “the buck has to stop with my dad” because the president chose Garland, and said Garland was too cautious in pursuing those he saw as responsible for Jan. 6. Those are sharp words coming from a man who has been in the center of the Justice Department’s glare.
Why the choice of Garland matters
This moment is newsworthy because it touches the heart of a long-running fight over how the Justice Department handled politically explosive probes. Former Attorney General Merrick Garland named Special Counsel Jack Smith to oversee high-profile Jan. 6 and classified-doc matters, and the department also elevated Special Counsel David Weiss to handle the investigation connected to Hunter Biden. People on both sides of the aisle have argued Garland moved either too slowly or too politically — and Hunter has now put his thumb on the scale against Garland.
Broader reactions and why Democrats are squirming
Hunter’s jab also revives a line Bob Woodward reported — that former President Joe Biden privately said he “should never have picked Garland.” Liberals once praised Garland as a steady hand; now even the president’s son is saying the pick backfired. Conservatives will use Hunter’s words to make a simple case: choices have consequences, and picking a cautious attorney general in a hot political moment meant many questions never got timely answers.
Bottom line: Responsibility and political cover
Call it candor, call it the kind of family airing you see on late-night shows — Hunter’s comment is a useful reminder that the people presidents choose matter. If the goal was to calm critics or win goodwill, picking a cautious figure like Garland may have sounded smart at the time. But the result has been years of headlines, special-counsel fights, and politics of blame that helped nobody — least of all the American people. If Democrats wanted cover, they now have it from an unlikely source: the president’s own son. That should worry anyone who thinks accountability shouldn’t depend on last names or podcast confessions.
