The Biden administration’s ethics office does not appear to have approved the appointment of one of Hunter Biden’s art patrons to the government commissions she’s been serving on since 2022.
The Office of Government Ethics (OGE) has no records related to Elizabeth Hirsch Naftali, the Democratic donor and Biden appointee who purchased Hunter Biden’s art, OGE told the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project in August 2021 following a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) public records request. (RELATED: Hunter Biden Flees Committee Hearing After Making Surprise Appearance)
FOIA RESPONSE:
The Heritage Oversight Project’s FOIA request covered any emails mentioning Naftali from the email addresses of key legal personnel inside OGE.
President Joe Biden appointed Naftali in to the U.S. Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad in July 2022, and she is currently listed among the committee’s members.
Naftali purchased $42,000 worth of Hunter Biden’s art shortly after President Biden’s Jan. 2021 inauguration, the younger Biden’s art dealer Georges Bergès told lawmakers, according to House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, who released a statement Tuesday summarizing Bergès’ deposition.
According to Comer’s statement, Bergès testified that he never communicated with the Biden administration, despite assurances from the White House that an agreement had been reached with Bergès to ensure that Hunter’s art deals were handled ethically.
“The vast majority of Hunter Biden’s art has been purchased by Democrat donors, one of whom was appointed by President Biden to a prestigious commission after she purchased Hunter Biden’s art for tens of thousands of dollars shortly after Joe Biden’s inauguration. The White House has a lot of explaining to do about misleading the American people,” Comer said.
The Washington Post reported in 2021 that White House officials worked on an ethics agreement, under which Bergès would negotiate the first son’s art sales, keep the buyers’ identities hidden from him and reject any offers that appeared exorbitant or otherwise suspicious. Bergès told lawmakers Hunter Biden knew the names of the individuals who purchased “roughly 70% of the value of his art,” Comer’s statement reads.
In July 2021, then-White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters there was a “system” in place for Hunter Biden’s art purchases.
Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, leaves the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building in Wilmington, Delaware, on July 26, 2023. Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to minor tax offenses on July 26, as a deal with federal prosecutors fell apart in a Delaware court. The surprise reversal of Biden’s agreement last month to settle the charges came after Judge Maryellen Noreika raised questions about the complicated deal that would also settle a separate gun charge against the president’s son, US media reported. (Photo by RYAN COLLERD / AFP) (Photo by RYAN COLLERD/AFP via Getty Images)
“Well, I can tell you that after careful consideration, a system has been established that allows for Hunter Biden to work in his profession within reasonable safeguards,” Psaki said. “Of course, he has the right to pursue an artistic career, just like any child of a president has the right to pursue a career. But all interactions regarding the selling of art and the setting of prices will be handled by a professional gallerist, adhering to the highest industry standards. And any offer out of the normal course would be rejected out of hand.”
Naftali spent another $52,000 on Hunter Biden’s art in Dec. 2022 after she was appointed to the commission, Bergès testified. She did not buy any of Hunter Biden’s art until his father became president, though The New York Times had devoted an story to Hunter’s artistic endeavors almost a year earlier.
Hunter Biden fixer and Democratic donor Kevin Morris also purchased art by the first son.
“It is abundantly clear that the White House was not straight with the American people about Hunter Biden’s art operation,” Heritage Oversight Project Director Mike Howell told the Daily Caller.
“In this instance, you have an individual who was not interested in his artwork prior to Joseph Biden becoming president, and then all of a sudden, purchases Hunter Biden’s art and subsequently gets appointed to a flashy commission,” he added. “The White House said that ethics lawyers were all over this stuff, but here we have the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) writing that they have absolutely nothing on Elizabeth Naftali.”
The Oversight Committee subpoenaed Naftali in November for a closed-door deposition.