The Blubber

During his campaign, President Joe Biden promised to create a strict separation between his official duties and his family's private business interests. The White House repeatedly emphasized this "absolute wall" when questions arose about Hunter Biden's art career. In 2021, an art gallery in New York debuted Hunter Biden's paintings with asking prices as high as $500,000, and the White House assured the public that Hunter Biden's team had a robust vetting process for buyers, keeping their identities confidential from the artist himself. The implication was that art patrons were unrelated to political matters.

However, recent revelations indicate that this separation between politics and art sales may not have been as clear-cut as portrayed. According to three individuals familiar with Hunter Biden's account of his art career, he did, in fact, become aware of the identities of two buyers. One of these buyers has connections to the Biden White House.

The buyer in question is Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali, a Los Angeles-based real estate investor and philanthropist, who holds influence within California's Democratic circles. She has been a significant Democratic donor, contributing $13,414 to the Biden campaign and $29,700 to the Democratic National Campaign Committee in the current year. In 2022, Naftali hosted a fundraiser featuring Vice President Kamala Harris as the headline guest.

Internal documents from Hunter Biden's gallery obtained by Insider reveal that a single buyer purchased artwork worth $875,000. The identity of this buyer remains unknown at this time.

In July 2022, eight months after Hunter Biden's initial art opening, Joe Biden appointed Hirsh Naftali to the Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad. It is uncertain whether Naftali's purchase of Hunter Biden's artwork occurred before or after her appointment to the commission. While commission membership is unpaid, it is often occupied by campaign donors, political allies, and family members — individuals who frequently secure US ambassadorial appointments as well. Naftali's active fundraising activities position her as a well-connected donor, a profile that aligns with those who typically receive such appointments, regardless of any ties to the president's family. Nevertheless, these revelations do not rule out the possibility that Hunter Biden might have advocated for Naftali's appointment to the commission.