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Cuomo: GOP claims that Hunter Biden got off easy fall flat

  • Hunter Biden agreed to plead guilty to tax evasion and gun charges
  • Republicans claim it was a "slap on the wrist" that proves DOJ corruption
  • Chris Cuomo says the GOP hasn't shown any proof of serious misconduct

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(NewsNation) — If there is one thing that I can convince you of for the rest of my TV life, it is this: See the game, change the game.

This dueling prosecutions of Donald Trump and Hunter Biden is the game all day long, and the worst aspect of it is that the game is masquerading as the pursuit of justice.

It is not justice. It is about “just us” — what gives one side an advantage.

The proof? Switch the R and D behind the names and see if the partisan sides would feel the same way.

The pursuit of Hunter Biden is the game. If he committed a crime, charge it, prosecute it. But the idea that he is getting a pass fails on two counts.

The first: For all the talk about the whistleblower, tapes, laptop and years of a Biden “crime family,” there is no proof the Bidens are on the take. Instead, there are only pictures that show what addiction does to someone and a lot of noise to distract from Trump and spread the idea that all politicians are dirty.

I know what you see on the internet about the bank accounts, wires, etc. You are being played. I lived this with Clinton, and I saw it again with Trump. If you look long enough, you will find something.

For those who ask why we don’t cover the Biden charges like Trump, look at the the coverage. Hunter is dominating headlines on unimpressive charges. Lawmakers have been all over TV making accusations, and they have delivered nothing.

Then there is the second proof of the game: Who gets federally charged for what Hunter Biden is accused of?

He agreed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges failure to pay federal taxes of over $100,000 in taxable income for 2018 and 2019. Do you know how often people get prosecuted and go to jail for that? It’s rare.

The critics will say “What about Roger Stone?” It was millions, for multiple years and multiple allegations of playing games to avoid taxes. By the way, I don’t hate Roger Stone. I have known him a long time, and don’t forget, unlike Hunter, he was convicted of obstructing a congressional investigation into Trump’s 2016 campaign. Seven counts, including witness tampering and lying to Congress.

People on the internet are also pointing to Wesley Snipes as proof that Biden should go to jail. The “Blade” actor, of whom I’m a big fan, was convicted of willful failure to file tax returns. He actually served time and we are told Hunter Biden will likely not.

Unfair? No.

Snipes hid $15 million in income. He refused to admit it, and he argued the IRS was an “illegitimate government agency.” He also played with the idea that foreign sources of income for U.S. citizens are not taxable. He claimed he was a non-resident alien, but Snipes was born in the U.S. in 1962.

The two cases aren’t the same, and not even remotely close.

Critics will also say, “But what about the gun charges? The left cares about guns but not when it is Hunter?”

He committed no crime with a gun. He lied on a form. I’ve seen many addicts try to get weapons in the misplaced sense of danger — they just don’t apply for a permit as he did.

It also matters to me, and was likely part of prosecutors’ assessment, that Biden struggles with drug addiction. If it were your family, or it wasn’t so important to your political opposition, it would likely matter to you, as well. Not because addicts should get away with crimes — prisons are full of them — but it matters.

While color and wealth absolutely can make a difference in the system, if Hunter’s last name was Bideeno he might not have been charged at all. These are not big time charges, and no one has shown proof of anything more.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the opposite, and he knows it is not true. He is playing the game, too, just not as well as Trump, which is why he is getting beat in polls. The idea that an Ivy League-educated lawyer would play at undermining our collective confidence in a system and society he wants to lead is the game at its worst.

Yet, here are the same who have never held Trump to the scrutiny they do the other side:

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green, R-Ga., called the plea deal “a stunt.” Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., called the agreement “a slap on the wrist.” Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. called it a “sweetheart deal.”

Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Oversight Committee, said it “represents a two-tiered system of justice.”

It is two-tiered alright — those you oppose and those you support, and Trump is our biggest beneficiary of the inequality.

Is it OK what Trump did with Jeff Sessions, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, state officials, obstructing the FBI?

Do we see this high dudgeon on the right about Jared Kushner doing business with the Saudis during his White House tenure? Ivanka Trump going to China for the U.S. and winding up with hard-to-get patents?

Of course not. This is the game, and I hate it all. So should you.

If Trump were Biden, the indictment would be the worst thing ever to the right, and that isn’t right.

I don’t like that I could not get a Democrat to address the Biden charges, and I don’t like that the right refuses to judge their side fairly. Ever.

I will say it again — the game is killing us. I am not saying things should not be investigated and prosecuted if warranted. Of course they should.

But we are allowing politicians to focus on prosecutions and investigations of each other instead of your business, and the worst part is they say they are doing this in the name of law and order. However, it seems the motives are not lofty — they are doing it because it works, and it is easier than dealing with the problems that affect you.

See the game. Reject it. Change it. We are better than this.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author, and not of NewsNation.

[CUOMO]

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

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