C-Span
- Donald Trump Jr says he "totally understands addiction" at CPAC, whilst lamenting Hunter Biden.
- Trump Jr adds that he believed Hunter Biden is a "total waste."
- President Biden has said he is "very proud" of his son.
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Donald Trump Jr has taken the stage at CPAC – America's largest Conservative conference – to call Hunter Biden a "total waste" and accused him of "selling access to the highest levels of government".
The former president's son suggested that Hunter Biden, second son of President Joe Biden, got an easy ride from the mainstream media over his former struggles with drug addiction.
"What do you think the media reaction would be to Don Jr smoking parmesan cheese? I promise you it wouldn't be what you see from the mainstream media. And then they say, 'oh you're making fun of people with addictions,'" Trump Jr said.
"Let's just talk about this for a second. I totally understand addiction. It is terrible. We all know people who have suffered from it. It does not exempt you from being a total waste in every other aspect of your life. This does not exempt you from selling access to the highest levels of government. This does not exempt you from selling your country." added the Conservative.
Conservative groups and figures, including Donald Trump Jr and his father, have repeatedly alleged that Hunter Biden used his father's influence to support his business dealings. The White House has denied any such conversations ever occurred.
Hunter Biden has been upfront with his past, with his recently published memoir detailing his years of addiction to alcohol and crack cocaine, exacerbated by the grief caused by the death of his brother.
President Biden has also openly acknowledged his son's complicated past. In a Presidential debate with President Trump in September 2020, he said: "My son, like a lot of people, like a lot of people you know at home, had a drug problem. He's overtaken it, he's fixed it, he's worked on it, and I'm proud of him."
Trump Jr has used the CPAC to claim that the world is "going to hell" under the Biden administration, and that "Fauci is better at pitching baseballs than he is at science.'