President Joe Biden on Thursday paid tribute to his son Hunter Biden , who has struggled with addiction, by posting a video to Twi...
President Joe Biden on Thursday paid tribute to his son Hunter Biden, who has struggled with addiction, by posting a video to Twitter marking the conclusion of National Recovery Month.
'As National Recovery Month concludes, I want to celebrate all of you out there who are in recovery, and let those of you who are not yet in recovery – or who have loved ones with substance abuse disorder – know that you are not alone,' the president said in a two-minute video.
He added: 'This is personal to millions of families. It's personal to my family. My son has written about it.'
Biden's son Hunter, 51, released a book in April of this year titled 'Beautiful Things: A Memoir' where he discussed his family, grief and his struggle with alcohol and drug addiction – specifically to cocaine.
While promoting his memoir in April, Hunter told CBS This Morning that he was smoking crack 'around the clock' and drinking a quart of vodka every day at the lowest points of his drug addiction, which he says stems from the death of his mother and sister when he was two.
Hunter's addiction became quite public during the 2020 presidential campaign when Biden was running against Donald Trump. It also became relevant regarding a gun purchase when on the forms Hunter allegedly broke federal law when claiming he did not have a history of addiction so he could obtain a firearm.
The 51-year-old president's son said in his CBS interview that becoming a laughing stock of the Trump campaign and liability to his father's campaign did nothing to stop his addiction.
'It didn't change my behavior - I still needed to get high and hide and fill that hole,' he said.
In the president's tweet of the video comments on Thursday, he wrote: 'This is personal to me — and I promise you there is hope.'
President Joe Biden marked the end of National Recovery Month by paying tribute to his son Hunter Biden
'This is personal to my family,' Biden said in his pre-recorded remarks. 'My son has written about it'
Hunter (right) has struggled with alcohol and drug addiction for years
Hunter published a memoir 'Beautiful Things' this year exploring his grief and addiction
'Treatment works, recovery is possible,' Biden said in his pre-recorded remarks straight to camera. 'And my administration is here to support every person and every family in their journey to recovery.'
Biden then cited the American Rescue Plan – his $1.9 trillion coronavirus economic stimulus bill passed in March. In the legislation, almost $4 billion was dedicated to expanding mental health and substance abuse disorder services.
The president's son claimed in his April interview that he was sober for seven years, from 2008 until 2015, after battling drug and alcohol addiction his entire life.
His brother Beau's death in 2015, he says, sent him hurtling back into addiction.
It all comes from an unresolved feeling of 'not fitting in', he claimed, adding that he thinks is from the trauma of losing his mom, Neilia, and sister Naomi, in a car crash when he was two in 1972.
Hunter and Beau both survived the accident.
'I am more convinced now that trauma is at the center of it. I don't know why I had such a hard time ever admitting that. There's a lot of research that points to the idea that addicts who suffer from addiction suffered from trauma.
'Beau and I never grieved the loss of our mother and sister. We talked about my mom all the time, but the accident no. The darkness that I know my dad suffered isn't something we talked about until much later. This is why I don't want to admit... we probably should have. I think they were trying to protect us,' he said.
Photos from Hunter Biden's laptop were obtained after the FBI seized his hard drive. On right the president's son is seen passed out with a crack pipe in his mouth
As a young adult, he said he slipped into a period that was a 'blur of complete debauchery'.
'Drinking a quart of vodka a day by yourself is absolutely completely debilitating... smoking crack around the clock, drinking insanely lethal amounts of alcohol,' he said.
President Biden declared on August 31 that September is National Recovery Month
'The COVID-19 pandemic has taken an enormous toll on the lives of the American people, especially those struggling with substance use disorder,' the president wrote in his proclamation. 'During National Recovery Month, we celebrate the millions of Americans who have achieved recovery and reaffirm our commitment to helping more Americans overcome substance use disorder and reach recovery.'
'We also support those who are still struggling to achieve recovery and dedicate ourselves to overcoming these challenges together.'
The theme for Recovery Month this year, as deemed by Biden, was 'Recovery is For Everyone: Every Person, Every Family, Every Community.'
Damning information related to foreign business dealings were found on Hunter's laptop in a DailyMail.com investigation
'During National Recovery Month, we also honor and thank those who have helped our Nation heal and build back better,' the statement from last month reads in using his campaign slogan and agenda proposals. 'In the face of unprecedented challenges this past year, our Nation's health care providers have delivered essential care and hope to individuals, families, and communities in need.'
'On the frontlines of the addiction epidemic, they have ensured our Nation's system of care remains intact, facilitating treatment and recovery. As always, we celebrate the resilience and courage of the recovery community, which serves as a reminder that recovery is possible for everyone.'
Damning images of Hunter were obtained from his personal laptop after the FBI seized his hard drive. Details found off the laptop, including foreign business dealings, were downplayed and in some cases even censored from being shared on social media.
A new book on Biden, however, verified that at least some of the information found on a laptop allegedly belonging to Hunter is real - months after incriminating emails regarding Hunter's dealings with Ukraine were examined in a DailyMail.com investigation.
Materials that were confirmed as real include an infamous 2015 email from Ukrainian businessman Vadym Pozharskyi thanking Hunter for the chance to meet his father, who was then Vice President Biden.
Someone with independent access to Hunter's emails confirmed he received the message.The book 'The Bidens: Inside the First Family's Fifty-Year Rise to Power' by Politico's Ben Schreckinger, released on Tuesday, documents the Biden family's decades-long political life.
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