Fox News
Donald Trump Jr speaking on "Hannity" on Fox News on Wednesday night.
- Donald Trump Jr on Wednesday compared himself to Hunter Biden during a Fox News segment - claiming that the younger Biden has an easier time than him making money from his family.
- "I wish my name was Hunter Biden. I could go abroad, make millions off of my father's presidency, I'd be a really rich guy!" the vice president of the Trump Organization told host Sean Hannity.
- Trump Jr then repeated his father's unsubstantiated claim that Hunter Biden took a $1.5 billion gift offering from China while Joe Biden was vice president.
- Trump Jr has obviously benefitted from his father's presidency. In one case he got $50,000 for a 15-minute speech at the University of Florida. He also works for his father's business.
- Allies of the president are seeking to divert attention from impeachment proceedings into claims that Trump asked Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden in exchange for aid money.
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Donald Trump Jr said he wished that he were Hunter Biden, so he could move abroad and "make millions" from the success of his father.
The executive vice president of the Trump Organization made the comment on Sean Hannity's Fox News show on Wednesday night while plugging his new book "Triggered."
"I wish my name was Hunter Biden," he said. "I could go abroad, make millions off of my father's presidency, I'd be a really rich guy! It would be incredible!"
"But because my name is Trump, if I took $1.50 from China - not $1.5 billion like Hunter - but $1.50 their heads would explode."
Trump Jr gave no evidence to substantiate the claim that Hunter Biden took money from China to sweeten the relationship with his father, vice president Joe Biden.
President Donald Trump also claims the Bidens got "millions of dollars from China." An investigation by The New York Times debunked the claim.
Trump Jr has obviously benefitted financially from his father's presidency. For example, Trump Jr was paid $50,000 for a 15-minute speech at the University of Florida on October 10.
He also works at his his father's company, overseeing his business empire since Trump took up the presidency. Most of his present-day media profile comes from discussing his father and his presidency.
REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
US President Donald Trump speaks with his son Donald Trump Jr. during a news conference in the lobby of Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York City, January 11, 2017.
Trump, his lawyer Rudy Giuliani, and other allies, have sought to damage Biden's reputation ahead of the 2020 presidential campaign, claiming without evidence that Biden improperly pressured Ukraine to fire prosecutor Viktor Shokin, who was investigating Burisma Holdings, who Hunter Biden worked for.
There is no evidence that Hunter Biden was individually scrutinized as part of that investigation.
Meanwhile, Trump himself is facing impeachment proceedings over the subject of a July 25 phone call with Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky where he reportedly pressured him for "a favor."
Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
President Donald Trump listens during a bilateral meeting with with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York City, New York, September 25, 2019.
Whistleblowers allege Trump withheld aid from Ukraine, offering to return it as a "quid-pro-quo" for a new investigation into Hunter Biden.
Shortly before the call, the White House froze $391 million in military aid to the country.
In late September, multiple Trump allies criticized Biden for the alleged assistance to his son, appearing not to realize that Trump's children do business around the world while benefiting from the presidency.