President Joe Biden on Friday for the first time publicly acknowledged his seventh grandchild, a 4-year-old girl fathered by his son Hunter with an Arkansas woman, Lunden Roberts, in 2018.
“Our son Hunter and Navy’s mother, Lunden, are working together to foster a relationship that is in the best interests of their daughter, preserving her privacy as much as possible going forward,” Biden said in a statement. It was his first acknowledgement of the child.
“This is not a political issue, it’s a family matter,” he said. “Jill and I only want what is best for all of our grandchildren, including Navy.”
Hunter Biden’s paternity was established by DNA testing after Roberts sued for child support, and the two parties recently resolved outstanding child support issues. The president’s son wrote about his encounter with Roberts in his 2021 memoir, saying it came while he was deep in addiction to alcohol and drugs, including crack cocaine.
“I had no recollection of our encounter,” he wrote. “That’s how little connection I had with anyone. I was a mess, but a mess I’ve taken responsibility for.”
An attorney for Roberts did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The president, who has made a commitment to family central to his public persona, has faced increasing criticism from political rivals and pundits for failing to acknowledge the granddaughter. According to a person familiar with the matter, he was taking the cue from his son while the legal proceedings played out. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private matters.
Hunter Biden has four other children, including a son, Beau, born to his wife Melissa Cohen in 2020. He was named after the president’s late son who died of cancer in 2015, leaving behind two children.
Biden’s grandchildren have played a distinctive role in his presidency, often accompanying the president or first lady on trips and making regular visits to the White House. The president has also credited his grandchildren with persuading him to challenge then-President Donald Trump for the White House in 2020.
(AP)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
14 Responses
I never understood this.
If both parents want to give the child up, it’s OK, but if just one of them does, then he has to pay?????
Also, what if the mother wants to give it up but the father wants the child? Would the mother have to pay?
Who makes up these rules?
Wait a minute. So our first African American female open lesbian press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, was lying all this time?! I am shocked!
NOT a story that yeshiva world should be reporting on! SHAMEFUL!
boo hoo, don’t care one bit of their mess…..sorry doesn’t work and a nazi as a president and evil skunk doesn’t either……no one does something for nothing, what is next…..Not a President is having a harsh gift to this world and trust Hashem has BEIT DIN first on his list
And?
Which Yeshiva World does YWN live in that you report these stories? What do you think our teenager boys are thinking when they read this article? Is the ad revenue worth it to be מחטיא את הרבים ? please ask your Rov about this, and your policies of publishing articles.
What has this shmutz got to do with Yeshiva World?
We don’t need to hear the lowest trash of the street!
Is this even relevant??? Does it make a difference if he recognizes the child or not? I mean come on can we find relevant news to post about instead of stupid news always pretending to irrelevant politics
Disagree with all the chachamim and their comments above. This story is what they’re all talking about in the coffee room at yeshiva, at the shabbos table and during the haftorah in shul.
Private lives of public figures should remain private
Hunter is a low level drug addict, out for good times, fathered a child in a non relationship and now has to pay for raising the kid. Sleepy Joe really doesnt want to acknowledge out of wedlock children as his grandchildren, but what a crummy family. What can he do.
Hunter is a fool and Joe is following not far behind him.
Jew Yorker,
I don’t know you so I can’t comment on your Shabbos table and your shul, but to say that they discuss this in the coffee room in Yeshiva, is being מבזה תלמידי חכמים and I must protest. Your post may be an even bigger עבירה than the original YWN post. You may want to ask your own Rov for advice as well, I hope you have a Rov that you can ask advice from.
Private lives of private people, should be kept private too.
Why do we need this rubbish on YWN?