Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), who is up for reelection next year, broke ranks with his party and said that the ongoing scandal surrounding President Joe Biden’s son may impact the 2024 race.
Tester was asked by reporters about the reported plea deal involving the president’s son. The preliminary agreement would likely mean that Hunter Biden would not see jail time for tax and firearms charges.
When asked about the decision, Tester said, “I don’t know. I mean, I think anything could be made into a liability in elections. Look, to be honest with you, I don’t think it helps him.”
However, in 2020 Tester criticized congressional Republicans for their probe into Hunter Biden. The GOP members of Congress were investigating the younger Biden’s role on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma despite having no prior relevant experience.
“Sen. Tester expressed concern over the reliance on reportedly untrustworthy foreign nationals and cautioned his colleagues against playing politics with national security,” his office said at the time.
The Montana senator has also broken ranks with his own party as of late. Tester joined several other Democrats in voting against the Biden administration’s proposed energy regulations.
Tester voted three times against Biden’s environmental proposal. The three-term senator said that he saw climate change issues “from probably a different angle” than the president.
John Tester, a pretend moderate, has been selling Montana down the river with his lockstep support of Biden agenda. Tester the Jester. https://t.co/XQi8mzlBls
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) June 18, 2023
“I’m less of a regulatory person and more for making investments,” he said. “Let the private sector get out there and get the work done so that capitalism can work.”
Earlier this year, Tester criticized the Biden administration’s approach to the Chinese spy balloon that flew over the continental United States prior to being shot down off the coast of South Carolina.
According to recent media reports, Hunter Biden agreed to a plea deal with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to misdemeanor charges stemming from several allegations.
The president’s son is accused of intentionally not paying taxes for two years and for previously possessing a firearm that he was not legally able to.
