Politics
JUST IN: 70 Percent Of Hunter Biden’s Art Buyers Were Wealthy Democrat Donors
The House Oversight Committee has released transcripts from its interview with Georges Bergès, Hunter Biden’s art gallerist. The testimony once again contradicts President Biden’s claims that he put a “wall” between his administration and his son’s business activities, as Bergès revealed that 70 percent of Hunter’s art purchases came from wealthy Democrat donors.
Bergès explained that art gallerists typically do not tell artists who the collectors are that will be buying their work. This was not the case for Hunter Biden, however, who wanted to know their identities.
“Hunter Biden wanted to know who was purchasing his art when he first started with you?” asked House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH). “That was the initial contract, correct,” Bergès replied.
The White House’s “ethics” agreement regarding Hunter Biden’s art was a sham. pic.twitter.com/JmvEZufSHH
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) January 22, 2024
Elsewhere in the interview, the art gallerist confirmed that wealthy Democrat donors were responsible for the majority of Hunter’s art sales, which he was aware of.
Bergès revealed that Kevin Morris — Hunter’s attorney who has visited the White House on numerous occasions — purchased most of Hunter Biden’s art for $875,000 in January 2023. Kevin Morris only paid Bergès 40 percent commission of the $875,000 purchase while Hunter and Morris worked out the financial complications.
The art gallerist told the committee that he had never been involved in a deal like that before.
“Not that I recall, but it’s not unusual if the collector and the artist have an existing relationship and they obviously want to pay me because he doesn’t want to ruin the relationship,” Bergès said when asked if the deal matched his past experiences. “If I’m a collector, I don’t want to ruin the relationship the artist has with the gallery.”
In February 2021, Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali purchased her first piece of Hunter Biden’s artwork for $42,000 just weeks after his father became president. Naftali, a Los Angeles-based real estate investor and philanthropist, is an active donor to Democrat campaigns. She donated $13,414 to the Biden campaign and $29,700 to the Democratic National Campaign Committee in 2023 alone and previously hosted a fundraiser for Vice President Kamala Harris in 2022.
In July 2022, President Biden announced Naftali’s appointment to the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad, a prestigious appointment usually reserved for well-connected donors. Naftali went on to purchase another piece of Hunter Biden’s art for $52,000 in December 2022.
In 2020, Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali did not buy Hunter Biden’s art despite Georges Bergès best efforts. Within two months of Joe Biden becoming President, in February 2021, Ms. Naftali purchased her first piece of Hunter Biden’s artwork for $42,000. Then in July 2022, President… pic.twitter.com/ao1Rfy0LZx
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) January 22, 2024
Georges Bergès told the committee that Hunter Biden’s name had influence on setting the exuberant prices for his work.
In addition, Bergès confirmed that he had talked on the phone and met with President Biden in-person. He was even invited to a wedding the Bidens hosted at the White House in 2022.
Georges Bergès stated that he has talked on the phone and met in-person with Joe Biden, even attending the wedding the Bidens hosted at the White House. pic.twitter.com/IAu6EoHl1K
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) January 22, 2024
The full transcript can be found here.