The Hill’s 12:30 Report — Hunter Biden strikes plea agreement

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–> A midday take on what’s happening in politics and how to have a sense of humor about it.* 

*Ha. Haha. Hahah. Sniff. Haha. Sniff. Ha–breaks down crying hysterically. 

TALK OF THE MORNING  

Hunter Biden to plead guilty to tax crimes: 

President Biden’s son, Hunter, will plead guilty to tax crimes and has reached a diversion agreement on a weapons charge, according to court documents. 

The plea deal, which must be accepted by a judge, will likely help him avoid jail time. 

Hunter Biden, 53, has been under investigation for tax issues for more than five years and reportedly paid off his tax tab in 2020 to avoid harsher consequences. 

“With the announcement of two agreements between my client, Hunter Biden, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, it is my understanding that the five-year investigation into Hunter is resolved,” Biden attorney Christopher Clark said in a statement. “Hunter will take responsibility for two instances of misdemeanor failure to file tax payments when due pursuant to a plea agreement. A firearm charge, which will be subject to a pretrial diversion agreement and will not be the subject of the plea agreement, will also be filed by the Government.” 

“I know Hunter believes it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life. He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward,” Clark added. 

President Biden has repeatedly defended his son from allegations of wrongdoing. (The Hill) 

TRUMP REACTS:  

Former President Trump and his supporters argue that the plea deal for Hunter Biden is unfair, when compared to the charges Trump is facing over his handling of classified documents. (The Hill) 

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE IS SAYING: 

“The President and first lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life. We will have no further comment,” White House spokesman Ian Sams said in an emailed statement to The Hill after news of Hunter Biden’s legal situation. (The Hill) 

ALL EYES ON 2024, OBVIOUSLY: 

The plea deal will undoubtedly fuel Republican talking points about the president’s family. 

Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) is vowing to continue the House GOP probe into the Biden family 

It’s Tuesday. I’m Elizabeth Crisp, filling in for Cate, with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up.

Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up here. Send me your tips, add me to your media list, share your funny animal videos and pass along your White House or 2024 campaign gossip: ecrisp@digital-release.thehill.com and follow me on Twitter @elizabethcrisp. 

Documents case 

It’s going down — Trump trial is set:

A Florida judge has set Aug. 14 as the court date for former President Trump‘s classified documents case.

It falls about two months after Trump’s arraignment in Florida. The judge said today that that all pre-trial motions must be filed by July 24.

WHY IT PROBABLY WON’T HAPPEN: 

Trump and his team are expected to push for a delay in the trial, making it unlikely the Aug. 14 date will stick.

RELATED: Trump had a one-on-one interview with Fox News’ Brett Baier, and it was quite contentious.

The two sparred over several issues, including the 2020 election results.

Just a snippet: “First of all, I won in 2020 by a lot,” Trump said at one point.

“You lost the 2020 election,” Baier shot back, noting the many reviews that disputed Trump’s election complaints. 😳 (The Hill)

In Congress 

Tuberville isn’t making many friends with anti-abortion protest:

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, the former college football coach-turned Alabama Republican lawmaker, isn’t backing down from his attempt to send a message about abortion by holding up military achievements. 

Now, Democrats are looking for a way around the first-term senator who’s been a thorn in their side. 

The Hill’sAlexander Bolton reports that “Senate Democrats say they’re ready to take another look at rules reform.” 

“We need to talk about changing rules that Republicans have learned to exploit. We can’t continue in a world where one senator puts our entire national defense at risk because he doesn’t like one policy followed by the Department of Defense,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told The Hill. She has repeatedly asked for unanimous consent to advance Biden’s nonpolitical military promotions that were ultimately blocked by Tuberville.   

✈️ Lawmakers — ‘Paris is always a good idea’:

Heads up: The Paris Air Show is happening and bringing all the American political stars to France.  

Politico reports that Reps. Ron Estes (R-Kan.), Rick Larsen (D-Wash.), Sam Graves (R-Mo.), Garret Graves (R-La.), Rudy Yakym (R-Ind.), Thomas Kean (R-N.J.), Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) and Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R), Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) and Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D)also made the trip. 

and Gary Peters (D-Mich.). Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R), Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) and Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D) also made 

We know: Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) is also in France for the air show. 

🏃 2024 

RFK Jr. will sit down with NewsNation:

Upstart cable news channel and The Hill partner NewsNation will host a town hall-style event with Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. later this month. 

The event, moderated by host Elizabeth Vargas, will be held in Chicago and broadcast live on June 28. (The Hill) 

🐊 In other news 

Louisiana is just doing its oddball thing … :

Things are getting very testy in the Louisiana GOP that already had some awkwardness over this whole GOP gubernatorial sitch. But seriously… 

The Advocate of Louisiana (hey, hey, my peeps!!) reports that the legislature I used to cover “ended the session in a maelstrom of retaliation, budget mishaps and name-calling. In the ensuing days, a steady stream of conservatives has taken to radio and social media to unleash a barrage of extraordinary insults aimed at House Speaker Clay Schexnayder.” 

What?! Here’s more from The Adv. 

SINCE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT LOUISIANA …  

Did you know there is a Jello shot challenge that happens during the College World Series in Omaha each year? (It has its own Twitter account keeping track.) Basically, fans come in, order the Jello shots for their team color and the bar keeps track of how many are for each team.

It’s no surprise that LSU won this year (on the Jello shots — not so much on the diamond), but Todd Graves, the founder of the chicken chain Raising Cane’s (an LSU grad) threw in to make sure his alma mater would win. It’s wild, but the word “extra” doesn’t exist in LSU world. 🐯 

As the shot tracker says (no edits): “Records are meant to be broken! All time team total All time overall total Guinness Book of World Record for shots purchased by one person.” 

And I’m always going to link to this when talking about my Louisiana … 

🐥 Notable tweets 

Not playing – Torres gives a lesson on Juneteenth: 

Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) was not mincing words when he gave a history lesson on the meaning of the Juneteenth holiday to school conservative pundit Charlie Kirk.  

“Juneteenth is not a ‘race-based competitor’ with July 4th. July 4th commemorates the Declaration of Independence. Juneteenth commemorates the enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation,” he wrote among other digs in the strongly worded tweet after Kirk questioned the validity of Juneteenth as a holiday.  

⏱ On tap 

The House and Senate are back from the weekend. The House came in at noon, and the Senate will be back at 3 p.m. President Biden is in California, and Vice President Harris is in Texas but heading back to D.C. this evening.  

• 1 p.m.: President Biden will get the Presidential Daily Briefing. 
• 4 p.m.: Biden will speak on his efforts to address the risks of artificial intelligence during a San Francisco event.  
• 5:30 p.m.: Biden will trek to Larkspur, Calif., for a campaign event.  
• 8:35 p.m.: Biden will head back to San Fran for another campaign event. 
• The Senate has several closed meetings on sensitive budget issues. 

Today’s committee hearings are here. 

All times Eastern.

🥤 In lighter news 

Today is National Vanilla Milkshake Day! Say what you want about things being ~vanilla~ but we can all agree a good milkshake is the best, no matter the flavor. 

And because you made it this far, check out this video of a funny cat and its weird friend.