According to a report in the Washington Post, in 1998, Richard Scruggs, a lawyer practicing in Mississippi, made an agreement with James Biden and Sara Biden's consulting firm, Lion Hall, to increase support for a tobacco bill being debated in Congress at the time. It was determined that Scruggs paid James Biden 100 thousand dollars for this work.
Speaking to the Washington Post, the lawyer stated, "I probably wouldn't have hired him if he wasn't the brother of a senator," while noting that James Biden never spoke about his brother.
The report stated that Scruggs wanted Joe Biden, who was a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the time, to support the bill. Although Biden was initially reluctant, he later became one of the bill's most important supporters, but the bill did not pass Congress.
Stating that he did not know whether James Biden had convinced his brother, Scruggs said in his statement to the newspaper, "I hope he did." James Biden's lawyer, however, said that his client's work never involved talking about his brother or providing access to him.
Years after the tobacco bill debates, the FBI took action and launched an investigation into Scruggs over allegations of bribing a judge with 40 thousand dollars.
One of the individuals whose phones were tapped as part of the investigation was James Biden. No evidence was found that the president's brother, who was preparing to form a company with Scruggs and his partners at the time, was involved in the bribery scheme.
Scruggs and his partners were arrested and sent to prison as part of the investigation.
His lawyer said that James Biden was never aware of the bribery scheme and that the partnership plans in the initial stages were never implemented.
The Washington Post, which reviewed the records, reported that James Biden spoke about potential partnership plans in many of the recordings.
The news comes at a time when Republicans in the US are calling for an investigation into the support Joe Biden has given to the private companies of his family members.
The House of Representatives, which has been investigating Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden for months, recently summoned James and Sara Biden to testify. This situation has turned attention to the influence of Joe Biden's brother on his life and career.
News Source: 12punto
