White House says Hunter Biden trial will not interfere with president's abilities to do his job
From CNN's Nikki Carvajal
The trial against President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden will “absolutely not” interfere with the president's ability to do his job, the White House said Monday.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden is “the President of the United States and he always puts the American people first and is capable of doing his job.”
Jean-Pierre said she had “nothing to share” when asked how the president was monitoring the proceedings and if he spoke to his son after the court concluded on Monday.
Earlier Monday, Biden released a statement in support of his son, writing in part: “I am the president, but I am also a dad.”
Jean-Pierre read the statement in full and said that outside of the statement, she didn’t “have anything else to share.”
See courtroom sketches from Hunter Biden's trial
From Bill Hennessy
No cameras are allowed inside the Delaware courtroom where Hunter Biden's trial is underway, but sketch artist Bill Hennessy captured the scene.
Tuesday: Opening statements then an FBI agent testifies
Opening statements will begin Tuesday morning in the Hunter Biden trial in Wilmington, Delaware.
Afterwards, the first witness from the special counsel's office will be an FBI agentwho worked on the investigation.
Hunter Biden leaves court after jury is selected
From CNN's Kit Maher
Hunter Biden departed the J. Caleb Boggs federal building after court has adjourned for the first day in his gun trial and a jury was selected.
He walked out with his wife Melissa Cohen Biden.
First lady Jill Biden exited the building about 15 minutes prior.
The jury: 6 men, 6 women
Judge Maryellen Noreika is reading the preliminary jury instructions to the newly minted jury, which was sworn in Monday afternoon.
The judge has confirmed that opening statements will happen Tuesday morning.
The jury includes six men and six women, the majority of whom are Black.
The seated jurors include a woman who said she has lost many friends to drug addiction, as well as gun owners including one who believes people who smoke marijuana should still be allowed to own firearms.
Correction: This post has been updated to correctly reflect the breakdown of the jury.
Jury is seated in Hunter Biden trial
The jury that will hear the gun case against Hunter Biden in Delaware has been selected.
The panel includes twelve jurors along with four alternates.Opening statements are expected Tuesday.
One potential Hunter Bidenjurorused to play squash with Joe Biden’s late son Beau
As jury selection moves into the final phase in the Hunter Biden gun trial, one man told the judge he knows the Biden family “fairly well” and couldn’t be impartial.
The man added that he had played squash with Joe Biden’s late son Beau, and he was dismissed.
Many potential jurors said they know about the case generally but not details.
“I live in Delaware,” one person told the judge. “You can’t swing a cat without hearing something.”
Another woman quipped: “Wilmington is a small place.”
Historian says this trial is an "albatross around President Biden's neck"
From CNN's Marshall Cohen
This is a historic moment for the United States and the history of the presidency. No president has ever tried to run the country while watching his own child go on trial.
Over the decades, there are plenty of examples of presidential family members getting in trouble. George H. W. Bush’s sonfaced civil penaltiesfor violating banking laws while his father was serving in the White House.Jimmy Carter’sbrotherwas scrutinized for his foreign lobbying. But nothing has sunk to the level of a criminal trial.
CNN presidential historian Douglas Brinkley said “there’s always somebody considered a black sheep in the presidential family,” but says Hunter Biden’s sprawling legal debacles “cut unusually close to the bone because it’s the President’s son.”
“This trial is an albatross around President Biden’s neck and weighs very heavily on his psyche,” Brinkley said.
“For any parent to watch their child go through addiction, and now face possible jail time, it’s harrowing," Brinkley added. "You would hope that family would be his comfort zone. But in this case, family is probably his biggest worry of the moment."
Jury selection phase primed to move to strikes from each side
So far, 34 potential jurors have qualified for the jury pool, with two more needed to advance to the next step.
After they have established that pool of 36, both sides will get a chance to use “strikes” to block a few people of their choosing from serving on the panel. They don’t need to provide a reason for these strikes.
The final panel will include 12 sworn jurors and four alternates.
All signs point to opening statementshappening on Tuesday morning.The judge has indicated that this is her expectation.
