President Joe Biden first acknowledged he has “seven grandkids” in an interview published Monday, after insisting throughout his administration that he only had six.
The president acknowledged the existence of Hunter Biden’s 4-year-old daughter on Friday. Biden had never previously publicly spoken about his granddaughter, Navy Joan Roberts, before his Friday statement, and Monday’s interview with Jay Shetty marked the first time Biden has included her in discussions about his family.
“My dad had an expression: family is the beginning, middle and end. There was a rule in the family growing up… whenever you wanted to speak to your father and mother… no matter what they were doing, they stopped. No matter what they were doing, they stopped and heard you, listened to you. And I did the same with my children, and they did the same with theirs because it’s a matter of them knowing that they are the most important thing in your life,” Biden began.
“I have seven grandkids. Four of them, five of them old enough to talk on the phone. Every day, I either text them or call them,” he added.
Hunter Biden and Navy Joan Roberts’ mother, Lunden Roberts, recently ended their legal battles over child support. Hunter Biden first denied being the father but was disproven after a paternity test.
In April, the president said he had six grandchildren. (RELATED: ‘I Have Six Grandchildren’: Biden Leaves Out Hunter’s Illegitimate Child While Speaking To Kids At White House)
“I have six grandchildren, and I’m crazy about them, and I speak to them every single day. Not a joke,” Biden said.
He then went into detail about the relationships he had with his grandchildren, leaving out Navy Joan Roberts.
“My oldest granddaughter is named after one of my daughters who I lost in an accident a long time ago, and her name is Naomi. And then I have number two, I have a [grand]daughter who works in the environmental movement, her name is Finnegan, who’s named after my mom,” Biden said. “And number three, my granddaughter, I call her my ‘all-American girl,’ she was actually a great little athlete, and she’s about to graduate from college in about two weeks … the nickname we call her is Macy. And then I have two other granddaughters who I just spoke to … Her name is Natalie, and she is a senior in high school … and then I have a grandson who is going to be a senior in high school, and then now I have a new, a new baby boy, who’s three-and-a-half years old.”
“Guess what, they’re crazy about me, because I pay so much attention to them,” Biden added.
Biden told PEOPLE on Friday that his son and Lunden Roberts are working to maintain a relationship that would preserve the privacy of their daughter.
“This is not a political issue, it’s a family matter,” Biden said. “Jill and I only want what is best for all of our grandchildren, including Navy.”