Jen Psaki - the Biden administration's former White House press secretary - says that the White House wants Hunter Biden to "stop talking in public."
Psaki said as much during Sunday's broadcast of NBC's Meet the Press. Psaki joined MSNBC after leaving the Biden administration.
One of the topics of discussion on Sunday's program was Hunter Biden, particularly in light of recent events - including his latest criminal indictment and his decision to disregard a congressional subpoena to provide testimony about the Biden family business.
Host Kristen Welker asked Psaki: "Jen Psaki, you had this surprise press conference by Hunter Biden. Did it help, or did it hurt?"
Welker is referring to the press conference that Hunter Biden gave after he decided to disregard the congressional subpoena.
At the press conference, Biden attempted to blame House Republicans - the ones who are investigating the Biden family business - for his current situation. He also tried to dictate the terms of his congressional testimony, saying that while he will not provide private testimony he will provide public testimony.
This has led to even more troubles for President Joe Biden and his administration, which was left answering questions such as whether the president knew or instructed his son to disregard the congressional subpoena. This is a particularly relevant question in light of the fact that Biden's Department of Justice (DOJ) will decide whether or not to prosecute Hunter Biden for violating the subpoena.
The president and his administration have refused to respond to this question head-on.
In the background of all of this is Hunter Biden's latest criminal indictment, in California, for various tax charges. This is in addition to Hunter Biden's other criminal indictment in Delaware.
To get back to Welker's question, Psaki clearly seems to think that Hunter Biden's press conference did more bad than good.
"Look, I think if you're sitting in the White House right now, you're like, 'Please, Hunter Biden. We know your dad loves you. Please stop talking in public.' This is not helpful to any of them for him to be out there," Psaki said.
Here, Psaki brought up recent reports indicating that the president is worried about his son, which many have argued is the White House's attempt to spin the situation to make it look as though Hunter Biden is the victim.
Psaki said, "But, at the same time, the president loves his son. That takes precedent over anything else. That is appealing. I'm thinking of the woman in your focus group who talked about family. He loves his son. He loves his family. He's worried about his mental health."
"But," Psaki concluded, "yes, the White House would like him to probably go away right now."
