President Biden, Congressional Black Caucus bid farewell to the late Eddie Bernice Johnson
“Without an Eddie Bernice Johnson, there would be no Vice President [Kamala} Harris,” Pastor Michael Waters said at the Monday wake.
Biden not informed of Secretary Austin’s cancer diagnosis until weeks after, same day as public: ‘Not optimal’
President Biden first learned of U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s prostate cancer on Tuesday — the same day as the public and a month after the diagnosis. Walter Reed National Military Medical Center revealed Tuesday that Austin was first diagnosed with prostate cancer in early December and underwent a prostatectomy on Dec. 22. Per Walter Reed, the 70-year-old recovered uneventfully from his surgery, and he returned the following morning. His prostate cancer was detected early, and the prognosis is “excellent,” the hospital said. During his hospitalization, Austin transferred authority to his Deputy Secretary, Kathleen Hicks, and did not inform the White House. The Defense Department has for days said Austin was initially at Walter Reed for an “elective medical procedure,” and not prostate surgery. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said later Tuesday that Biden was not informed of Austin’s hospitalization until last Thursday, and only learned of the cancer diagnosis Tuesday. Asked whether President Biden believed the time-lapse was acceptable, Kirby admitted it was “not optimal.” WHITE HOUSE LAUNCHING REVIEW OF CABINET PROTOCOLS AFTER DEFENSE SECRETARY’S SECRET HOSPITALIZATION: MEMO “For a situation like this to go as long as it did without the commander-in-chief knowing about it, or the national security adviser knowing about it, or frankly, other leaders at the Department of Defense, that’s not the way this is supposed to happen. The president understands that,” Kirby said. White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients released a memo earlier Tuesday to the president’s cabinet concerning protocols for delegating authority. It asks that every cabinet agency submit in writing their current existing protocols for a delegation of authority they have in place for review to the White House Office of Cabinet Affairs and the Chief of Staff by Friday. Zients’ memo also directs protocols that cabinet agencies must undertake in the event of a delegation of authority, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. The Pentagon has also launched its own review. “We all recognize that this didn’t unfold the way it should have. On so many levels, not just the notification process up the chain of command, but the transparency issue — we all recognize that. And I think we all want to make sure we learn from that,” Kirby said. It was still not clear Tuesday how this would affect Austin’s job, travel or other public engagements going forward. The Pentagon issued a memo Monday on its own internal review, and broadened the circle of leaders who would be informed of any delegation of authorities by the defense secretary to ensure that, in the future, “proper and timely notification has been made to the President and White House and, as appropriate, the United States Congress and the American public.” Going forward, any time authority is transferred, a wider swath of officials will also be notified to include the Pentagon’s general counsel, the chair and vice chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Combatant Commanders, service secretaries, the service chiefs of staff, the White House Situation Room, and the senior staff of the secretary and deputy secretary of defense.
Biden’s handling of Defense Sec Austin’s mysterious absence faces backlash from former ambassador: ‘Alarming’
A former ambassador slammed President Biden’s handling of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s mystery ailment and hospitalization, saying it’s “alarming” that Biden did not notice he was “out of action” sooner. The Pentagon alerted the media last Friday that Austin was hospitalized on Jan. 1 and remains under the care of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Details about Austin’s medical condition are unclear. Officials stated that he underwent an elective medical procedure last month and was hospitalized in the following days. Biden, along with the National Security Council and leaders at the Pentagon, including Deputy Secretary of Defense, Kathleen Hicks, were not informed for several days that Austin had been admitted to the hospital’s intensive care unit for treatment on New Year’s Day. Now, James Gilmore, who served as ambassador to the U.S. Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe during the Trump administration, said it’s worrisome that Biden is “so detached” from his Defense Department that he did not notice his absence. DEFENSE SECRETARY AUSTIN HAS NO PLANS TO RESIGN, PENTAGON SAYS “From my experience as ambassador, I know that our allies need to know that the United States is competent and organized to provide leadership in a time of global conflict,” Gilmore, the former governor of Virginia with a background in military intelligence stemming from his military service during the Vietnam War, told Fox News Digital. “The world, allies and adversaries, watches the U.S. and its leadership every day for signs of strength or weakness.” “It is alarming that President Biden is so detached from his Defense Department, that he didn’t even know the Secretary was out of action, and that the Defense leadership didn’t feel the need to tell him,” Gilmore said. “Biden is only an ‘autopilot President’, who daily shows he is not in control in this time of great danger to our country.” A Biden administration official responded to the critique by telling Fox News Digital by saying, “I’m not familiar with him.” “But if he had nothing to say when Donald Trump outright lied to the American public about his covid case at the height of the pandemic, then I can’t hear him now,” the official continued. The ordeal has led to Trump saying Austin “should be fired immediately” and other Republicans demanding he step down from his post. “He has been missing for one week, and nobody, including his boss, Crooked Joe Biden, had a clue as to where he was or might be,” Trump said in a previous Truth Social post. Indiana Republican Rep. Jim Banks told Axios over the weekend that Austin “has been a disaster since Day One and should be replaced by someone who will focus on making the military ready to fight and win wars instead of advancing woke political causes of the Biden admin.” Rep. Matt Rosendale’s, R-Mont., office told Fox News Digital on Monday that the lawmakers was introducing articles of impeachment against Austin because he believes Austin “violated his oath of office” on multiple occasions, citing the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, the migrant crisis at the border, and last year’s incident with a Chinese spy craft floating above the continental U.S. “Sec. Austin knowingly put the American people in danger and compromised our national security when he allowed a spy balloon from a foreign adversary to fly over Malmstrom Air Force Base – home to ICBMs – and allowed the Chinese Communist Party to gather intel on American citizens,” the Montana Republican said. DEFENSE SECRETARY AUSTIN RESUMES DUTIES, WAS IN INTENSIVE CARE UNIT FOR DAYS AS PUBLIC KEPT IN THE DARK Others, such as Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, said Austin isn’t “capable” of leading the Defense Department. “And he just proved it again by keeping it a secret when he was very sick and in the ICU,” Greene posted on X. The secret hospitalization has caused headaches for the White House, who told Fox News Digital on Monday morning that Biden has no plans to replace Austin and “continues to have full trust and confidence in the Secretary.” Though still hospitalized, Austin has resumed his duties and is now recovering from treatment and an undisclosed illness. Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind contributed reporting.
Gov. Reeves sworn in for second term after underwhelming election win in deep-red Mississippi
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves was inaugurated for his second term on Tuesday. The 49-year-old Republican is the fourth Mississippi governor to win two consecutive terms. Reeves campaigned by focusing on tax cuts, job creation, low unemployment and improvements in education. He also cast his Democratic opponent as a liberal backed by out-of-state donors who were out of step with Mississippi. MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE BEGINS NEW TERM AS GOP OVERHAULS HOUSE LEADERSHIP Reeves held two other statewide elected offices before becoming governor four years ago. He served two terms as treasurer and two as lieutenant governor. The state lifted its ban on gubernatorial succession in the 1980s. Republicans have held the Mississippi governorship the past 20 years. The November general election was unusually competitive in a state where Republicans control all statewide offices and both chambers of the Legislature. Reeves received nearly 51% of the vote to defeat Democrat Brandon Presley, who received nearly 48%, and independent Gwendolyn Gray, who received just over 1%. Presley, a state utility regulator and second cousin of Elvis Presley, said Reeves had hurt the state by refusing to expand Medicaid to cover people working lower-wage jobs that do not provide health insurance. Presley pledged to clean up corruption, pointing to welfare money that was spent on pet projects for the wealthy and well-connected rather than aid for some of the poorest people in one of the poorest states in the nation.
Marshall brings ‘no confidence’ resolution of Mayorkas to Senate floor: ‘Derelict in his duties’
FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Roger Marshall, R-M.D., will lead a resolution on the Senate floor Tuesday afternoon calling for a vote of “no confidence” of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Republican lawmakers have been critical of Mayorkas’s handling of the southern border, as illegal immigrant crossings reached a record high last month. The resolution comes just days before the House launches an impeachment hearing into the DHS secretary over his handling of the southern border. Hundreds of thousands of migrants have illegally crossed into the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) sources told Fox News Digital last month that there were upward of 300,000 migrant encounters at the end of December — a historical record for crossings in a single month. “Secretary Mayorkas is derelict in his duties and has failed to uphold his oath,” Marshall, one of the members of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, is expected to say on the floor Tuesday afternoon. MAYORKAS ACKNOWLEDGES THAT MAJORITY OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RELEASED INTO US: ‘I KNOW THE DATA’ “Over the past three years, Secretary Mayorkas has refused to enforce immigration laws passed by Congress, fueling the invasion at our border. He ended effective border policies like catch and release, Remain in Mexico, Title 42, and exploited parole and asylum loopholes that have allowed over 6 million migrants to live in the interior of our country without being vetted and with a court date nearly a decade away,” Marshall is expected to say. “With over 10 million illegal migrants entering our country under this administration’s watch, not to mention 1.7 million known ‘gotaways,’ the crisis at our borders dire,” Marshall is expected to say. “Yet, Mayorkas continues to lie to the American people, and even under oath to Congress, when he says he has “operational control” of our borders.” The Republican lawmaker is expected to add, “To claim that he has any control, better yet, ‘operational control’ as required by law, is not only disingenuous and insulting to the American people who are concerned for their safety and security — it’s illegal.” MAYORKAS TELLS BORDER PATROL AGENTS THAT ‘ABOVE 85%’ OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RELEASED INTO US: SOURCES “My colleagues and I have outlined numerous ways Secretary Mayorkas is derelict in his duty as secretary and failed to uphold his oath,” Marshall intends to say. Following Marshall’s floor remarks, Marshall will hold a press conference with Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and other GOP senators. In a private meeting with agents in Eagle Pass, Texas, last week, Mayorkas agreed with Border Patrol agents that the current rate of release for illegal immigrants apprehended at the southern border is “above 85%,” according to three Border Patrol sources who were in the room and heard the remarks themselves. The conversation happened during the muster for agents in the busy border area. Fox is told Mayorkas was asked directly about comments he made on “Special Report” last week when he was asked by anchor Bret Baier about reporting that over 70% of migrants are released into the U.S. each day. EX-DHS OFFICIALS BACK JOHNSON’S AGGRESSIVE BORDER STANCE IN FUNDING FIGHT, SAY GOP MUST HAVE ‘CLEAR RESOLVE’ “It would not surprise me at all. I know the data,” Mayorkas said. “And I will tell you that when individuals are released, they are released into immigration enforcement proceedings. They are on alternatives to detention. And we have returned or removed a record number of individuals. We are enforcing the laws that Congress has passed.” Fox News’ Adam Shaw, Bill Melugin and Griff Jenkins contributed to this report.
Florida Legislature opens as DeSantis prepares to return to Iowa
The Florida Legislature opened its annual 60-day session Tuesday and prepared to hear Gov. Ron DeSantis give his State of the State address before he heads back to Iowa for next week’s crucial presidential caucuses. TRUMP TAKES NO CHANCES AS IOWA’S REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CAUCUSES APPROACH The Senate and House began the largely ceremonial proceedings, with lawmakers coming together for optimistic speeches from the Republican leaders of each chamber. Flowers adorned the lawmakers’ 160 desks as Cabinet members, Supreme Court Justices and former leaders gathered waiting for DeSantis. Unlike past years, DeSantis has largely been quiet about what he hopes to achieve during the session, focusing instead on his presidential campaign, where polls show he badly trails former President Donald Trump in Iowa and New Hampshire. The opening of the session was also marked by stormy weather as strong winds and rain pounded the Florida Panhandle while rolling toward Tallahassee. Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis skipped the ceremonies to travel to the Panama City area to view storm damage. “I think tropical storm force winds on opening day means good luck, kind of like rain on your wedding day,” Senate President Kathleen Passidomo said. “I hope the old adage in like a lion, out like a lamb will ring true this session.”
The hitchhiker’s guide to where we stand with a potential government shutdown
It is becoming increasingly obvious to lawmakers that the only way to avert a partial government shutdown at the end of next week is to do a stopgap spending bill known as a CR – short for continuing resolution. Such a bill simply renews all spending at current levels. There simply isn’t enough time to advance everything by the deadline at the end of next week. SENATE NOT EXPECTED TO RELEASE TEXT ON BORDER SECURITY PACKAGE THIS WEEK Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., says a CR is necessary to avoid a shutdown. That will intensify pressure on House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. Johnson has said he will not do CRs. He wants to do bills individually. House Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., suggested that a March deadline would give Congress time to process spending bills at the bipartisan topline level agreed to over the weekend. Fox News Digital is told that a growing number of House Republicans are starting to embrace the concept of a government shutdown in order to get a border deal. It’s good politics for some Republicans back home – even if the issues aren’t directly related. “A shutdown gets us nowhere,” said one senior House GOP leadership source to Fox. “Expectations are too high.” Some Republicans are starting to double down on “HR 2” – the strict border policy bill the House approved last spring. But one knowledgeable source told Fox they doubted the House could even pass HR 2 now – considering the GOP’s two-seat, operational majority. THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO WHY THE BIPARTISAN SPENDING AGREEMENT DOESN’T NECESSARILY AVERT GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN If Johnson switches his position on a CR to avoid a shutdown, he could get eaten alive from the right. “The right is going to eat him no matter what,” said one veteran House Republican. Republicans who like the bipartisan, bicameral spending accord say the plan addresses “runaway spending.” Another source said it was time to act – even if it entails a CR to buy time. CRUNCH TIME: CONGRESS KICKS OFF 2024 STARING DOWN POTENTIAL SHUTDOWN “We could fight about appropriations bills for the next six months,” said one House Republican who asked not to be named, adding that their GOP colleagues advocating a shutdown were “politically immature.” Fox is told that lawmakers may need to accept what one source characterized as “two minibusses” where spending bills are glommed together. But that is also anathema to many Republicans. A shutdown on Jan. 19 likely means that portions of the federal government remain shuttered until at least Feb. 2, the second deadline for the remainder of the spending bills. A shutdown also imperils GOP efforts to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. It could also derail chances by bipartisan negotiators to secure a bona fide border security accord. The question becomes whether some Republicans are willing to accept minimal spending reductions agreed to by Johnson – or shut down the government over the border, “purity” (keeping the spending bills separate), blow up what could be a potential agreement on border security, or sidetrack their own effort to impeach Mayorkas.
Frustrated GOP hardliners worry Speaker Johnson bringing ‘more of the same’ after McCarthy
EXCLUSIVE: House Republican hardliners who criticized ex-Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s government funding compromise with President Biden are now concerned that Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., will usher in “more of the same” leadership despite promising a fresh start. “I think this contributes to the fiscal harm to our country and is consistent with what has happened for the past year,” House Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good, R-Va., told Fox News Digital of Johnson’s recent government funding deal with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Good, one of eight House Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy in early October last year, pointed out that he opposed every spending compromise brought under both GOP speakers so far. “None of these bills or spending initiatives are making any significant policy changes to reverse the harm being done by the Pelosi-Schumer-Biden policies that are in place. So this is more of the same,” he said. Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., another of the eight, agreed it appeared the House GOP was on a similar path. HOUSE, SENATE RELEASE BIPARTISAN AGREEMENT ON GOVERNMENT FUNDING AS SHUTDOWN DEADLINES LOOM “We just have to decide who we are as a party. I would hope at some point we would resume our role as fiscal conservatives,” he said. The showdown over policy attachments to Congress’ coming spending bills is going to be a flashpoint in any government shutdown standoffs going on this month, with the first funding deadline coming on Jan. 19. Schumer suggested he would not entertain any conservative policy riders in the final deal, while Johnson touted the deal as the pathway to scoring those wins. But the Republicans who spoke with Fox News Digital on Monday said getting those policies attached would be a critical test of Johnson’s mettle as a conservative leader. WHERE NO CONGRESS HAS GONE BEFORE: FACING GALACTIC-SCALE FISCAL CLIFF AND BORDER SECURITY THREATS “Well, it looks pretty similar. I mean, they’re talking about it in similar ways,” Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, said of the deal. “We’ve gone through a lot as Republicans, in our very narrow majority this year, but we didn’t go through this to get rolled. And so the numbers aren’t great. So the policies have to be there.” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, was pessimistic about seeing any policy riders that would offset what he saw as capitulation by House Republicans. He went further, arguing the Johnson-Schumer deal put the GOP in a worse position than McCarthy did. “It’s just a continuation of the same problems that we were frustrated with last year. But I mean, I’ve got to be honest. In many ways, it’s worse,” Roy said. He targeted Johnson for keeping in a $69 billion side agreement between McCarthy and Biden which would raise the agreed-upon spending topline to about $1.65 trillion. Johnson negotiated $16 billion in extra cuts this year to offset some of that. The statutory topline previously set by McCarthy and Biden during negotiations on raising the debt limit, $1.59 trillion, would stay in place. “I think Speaker McCarthy was trying to…figure out how we could land the plane. Side deals were cut, which should not have been cut, and we told him that, and we were working on trying to constrain that spending. Unfortunately, Mike just basically cut a deal that continued all of his quote, ‘side deals,’” Roy said. HUNTER BIDEN, MAYORKAS, FAUCI: HOUSE LAWMAKERS RETURN FROM HOLIDAYS FOR A HIGH-PROFILE WEEK He accused Johnson of having “capitulated to the uniparty,” adding, “We are now going to be left holding the bag.” “And I’m going to be told and sold that we’re gonna get all these great…policy changes,” Roy said. “I will amend my sentence if we end up getting some massive policy wins attached to the spending, but I do not believe that we can possibly get enough policy wins on the riders to offset the damage of spending that much more money.” Johnson is not afforded much wiggle room in his situation, presiding over a slim House GOP majority and negotiating with Democrats in both the Senate and White House. It will be a tough environment to get the kind of policies passed that the right flank of his conference would consider a win. But even his allies among the right flank, like Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., are criticizing the deal and demanding significant policy overhauls – specifically on the border. “This proposal is [dead on arrival]- it’s a ‘teardrop in the ocean’ of what we should be considering for overall spending,” Norman said. “Regarding Speaker Johnson, I feel we are in much better shape because of one key factor TRUST,” he told Fox News Digital in a text. “He will tell us what’s going on ‘behind closed doors’ HOWEVER Mike has to stand strong even if it means a shutdown of government!!” Fox News Digital has reached out to Johnson’s office for comment.
Dems, GOP at standstill on border security deal with several ‘unanswered issues’ remaining
A border deal that was anticipated to be finalized in text this week has hit a roadblock but is still progressing, according to Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla. “There’s too many unanswered issues” for officials to sort through still, Lankford, one of the key negotiators, told reporters Monday. One of those “unanswered issues” lawmakers are stuck on is a key policy issue dividing Republicans and Democrats — parole authority. Parole authority, an integral border policy that allows illegal migrants to live in the U.S. temporarily and obtain their green cards, was expanded under the Biden administration to permit 30,000 nationals from four nations to fly in and receive parole into the U.S. monthly, forming part of the administration’s strategy to address the continuous crisis at the southern border. KEY LAWMAKERS RETURN TO THE HILL EARLY TO CONTINUE BORDER SECURITY TALKS AS HOUSE REPUBLICANS VISIT BORDER Lankford, alongside other lead negotiators Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., and Chris Murphy, D-Conn., began negotiations with U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and other Biden officials a week before the upper chamber was scheduled to go on its holiday recess. Republicans want several measures included in a deal, including more restrictions on parole and reforming how asylum is granted, making the process more stringent for qualifying for asylum. They also want to increase detention beds and the presence of parole agents. DEMOCRAT SENATOR SOUNDS ALARM ON ‘CRISIS’ AT SOUTHERN BORDER, URGES NEGOTIATORS TO STRIKE A DEAL On Wednesday, House Republicans and the Senate Republican Conference will receive a briefing from Lankford on the status of the negotiations. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., on Tuesday said one of his questions is whether there will be “anything in this bill that’s going to deal with the people that are here illegally.” “My understanding is that McConnell doesn’t want to tie having a secure border to Ukraine aid,” Scott said. “So, what are we going to tie to make sure that the Biden administration actually does whatever we pass?” The Senate is also dealing with an upcoming Jan. 19 deadline to pass critical funding for several federal agencies and avert a government shutdown. The second deadline for the remaining agencies is Feb. 2. Sen. Ron Johnson, Wis., told reporters Tuesday “the real conundrum Republicans face is trying to negotiate a deal with this president.” “It’s like negotiating with the arsonist to put out the fire he or she started,” he said. Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., told reporters Monday he doesn’t “think there’s going to be enough for us to get it on the January 19 package, but maybe there will be by February 2, and that makes more sense to me.” SENATE NOT EXPECTED TO RELEASE TEXT ON BORDER PACKAGE THIS WEEK Lawmakers hope to strike a deal that will tie border security measures into the national supplemental funding request that would provide some $60 billion to Ukraine and $14 billion to Israel. But GOP lawmakers have insisted that either the supplemental or government funding have some border security conditions attached to it. “It should surprise no one that it’s going to take time,” Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the floor Tuesday. “Of all the difficult issues we face in this room, in this chamber, immigration is near the top.” But the upper chamber could be headed for a showdown in the GOP-controlled House if the border agreement lacks elements of H.R. 2, or the Secure the Border Act. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP There were over 302,000 migrant encounters in December, after a fiscal 2023 that saw a record 2.4 million encounters overall. A recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement report said the agency removed 142,580 illegal immigrants in fiscal 2023, up considerably from 72,177 in fiscal 2022 and 59,011 in fiscal 2021, but still down from the highs of 267,258 under the Trump administration in fiscal 2019. Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Hunter Biden gallerist tells lawmakers he never spoke to White House about paintings: sources
Hunter Biden’s art dealer told lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Tuesday that he has never discussed the paintings with the White House, Fox News Digital has learned. A source familiar with Georges Bergès’ transcribed interview before the House Oversight Committee said Bergès told lawmakers he’s had no communication with the White House, including about Hunter Biden’s paintings. Bergès stated that he never told Hunter Biden who any of the buyers were, the source said. The gallerist is speaking to the Oversight Committee behind closed doors as part of House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry into President Biden. GOP lawmakers have accused Biden of using his status and name to enrich himself and his family. HOUSE REPUBLICANS CONSIDER HOLDING HUNTER BIDEN IN CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS Republican investigators have suggested they are suspicious over whether Hunter Biden’s art career, which began in recent years, has led to any conflicts of interest between wealthy buyers and the White House. A second source familiar with the interview confirmed to Fox News Digital that Bergès said he did not discuss Hunter Biden’s paintings or anything else with the White House, but said it proved that a widely reported “ethics agreement” between Biden officials and Bergès’ gallery to prevent wrongdoing was a lie. HOUSE GOP PROBING IF BIDEN WAS INVOLVED IN HUNTER’S ‘SCHEME’ TO DEFY SUBPOENA, POTENTIAL ‘IMPEACHABLE OFFENSE’ “The White House’s ‘ethics’ agreement regarding Hunter Biden’s art was a sham. The White House never facilitated any agreement, despite saying the opposite to the public,” the second source said. “George Bergès stated he never had any communication with the White House about an agreement about Hunter Biden’s art and admitted Hunter Biden knew the identities of the individuals who purchased roughly 70% of the value of his art, including Democrat donors Kevin Morris and Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali.” A large share of that 70% is entertainment lawyer Kevin Morris, the first source said, who loaned Hunter Biden $4.9 million between 2020 and 2022. JORDAN SAYS HUNTER BIDEN MADE A ‘HUGE CHANGE’ BY SAYING HIS FATHER WAS ‘NOT FINANCIALLY INVOLVED’ IN BUSINESS The White House has openly referenced that agreement in the past, but details have been vague. Former Biden press secretary Jen Psaki lauded it in July 2021 for “a level of protection and transparency” but when asked about ethical concerns the following month, said, “we have spoken extensively to the arrangements, which are not White House arrangements; they’re arrangements between Hunter Biden’s representatives and ones that we, certainly, were made aware of.” The second source provided additional details on the hefty sums that Bergès said Hunter Biden’s art fetched from prominent Democratic donors. That includes $875,000 in art purchased by Morris. Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali, who the president appointed to the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad in 2022, bought Hunter Biden’s art for $42,000 in 2021 and for $52,000 at the end of 2022.