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There are few men in American politics who represent fatherhood like President Joe Biden. The Biden family has seen unimaginable tragedy, and as the patriarch of the family, Biden has weathered the storm admirably at the helm of the ship.
But now, that ship is sinking—fast.
The Biden family has seven grandchildren, but you've never heard that come out of the President's mouth. To the President, he only has six, because he ignores the inconvenient child fathered by his only living son Hunter. That child, a four-year-old living in Arkansas named Navy Joan, isn't allowed to use her own father's last name, because he legally barred her from doing so.
This is a far cry from the behavior of a man who ran as the moral superior to Donald J. Trump.
In her column over the weekend in the New York Times, Maureen Dowd pulled no punches. "The President's cold shoulder—and heart—is counter to every message he has sent for decades, and it's out of sync with the America he wants to continue to lead," writes Dowd.
Indeed.
And it's a departure from the President's former posture. With all of Hunter Biden's escapades, the majority of feeling Americans pitied the President. Last year, a 2018 voicemail from the President to his son was leaked, and we heard Joe tell his son, "It's Dad. I called to tell you I love you. I love you more than the whole world, pal. You gotta get some help. I know you don't know what to do. I don't either."
The family had been through so much trauma, it was understandable that Hunter had gone off the rails. Even in the best of circumstances, sometimes kids run astray, no matter how well they were raised. Perfect parents can raise imperfect children; this is a universal truth. Biden was applauded for continuing to remain loyal and loving to his son, despite his many documented failings.
But a lot of that admiration has evaporated in light of how the President has gone from supporting his son to mimicking him, turning his back on the granddaughter his son has barred from using the name "Biden."
Maybe now we're seeing the truth, that the apple didn't fall far from the tree. Perhaps Hunter's behavior isn't despite his upbringing, but is connected to it. Joe and Jill Biden are participants in Hunter's cruelty toward his own daughter.
It's one thing to refuse to throw your own child under the bus when reporters ask about his drug use and sexual escapades; it's quite another to support his decision to try to run from his responsibility to his child, both financial and emotional.
Joe Biden's willingness to put up with his son's behavior should have ended the moment Hunter's behavior began to hurt a child. If Joe Biden is willing to participate in Hunter's emotional trauma upon his own granddaughter, did he ever raise Hunter with a working moral compass? The proper response should have been, "I love you buddy, but this is my granddaughter, and she deserves a grandfather. She deserves a dad, too. I raised you better than this."
But it wasn't his response, and maybe he didn't raise him better than this. Instead he went along with Hunter's attempts to outrun his fatherly responsibilities.
Bethany Mandel is a columnist, political commentator and co-author of Stolen Youth: How Radicals Are Erasing Innocence and Indoctrinating a Generation. You can follow her on Twitter at @bethanyshondark.
All views expressed in this article are the author's own.
