A prominent donor to the Democratic Party received a political appointment after paying $1.3 million for artwork produced by President Joe Biden’s son Hunter. The latest revelation came as scrutiny of the Biden family’s business dealings has reached a new high.
Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali received an appointment to the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad by President Joe Biden eight months after an art show by the First Son. The Hollywood event showed a number of Hunter Biden’s works, while another buyer purchased 11 products for almost $900,000.
The president’s son also sold five art prints for $75,000 each. The show was also attended by former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (D), who was later appointed Biden’s ambassador to India.
In March 2015, Missy Owens emailed her cousin Hunter Biden about whether her mother could receive a spot on the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage — the same agency the woman who bought Hunter's painting now sits. https://t.co/7aeN350v13
— Joe Gabriel Simonson (@SaysSimonson) July 25, 2023
The administration promised that the identities of those who purchased Hunter Biden’s art would be anonymous.
At the time, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that the White House did not know “and will not know who purchases any paintings.”
Naftali was appointed to the position following a recommendation from former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
The Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad describes Naftali as the head of a commercial real estate company in Los Angeles and that at the start of the COVID pandemic, she “started the Make More Masks Campaign, producing and distributing over 100,000 masks to keep those most vulnerable in our communities safe.”
The concern regarding the sale of the artwork and access to the White House also comes as the House Oversight Committee will hear testimony that Joe Biden spoke to his son’s business associates.
The upcoming allegations from Hunter Biden’s former business associate Devon Archer state that the elder Biden spoke to his son’s business contacts on several dozen occasions.
Should the Oversight Committee confirm the details, the testimony would directly contradict multiple statements from the president that he had no involvement in his son’s business dealings.
It also comes as the president’s son is expected to plead guilty to a number of tax and firearms violations this week, likely avoiding jail time.
