Sen. John Curtis (R-UT) called for an investigation into Donald Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden for the alleged “use of presidential family relationships for private financial benefit, preferential treatment, or access by domestic and foreign interests.”

Curtis sent a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-IL) calling for the probe.

“As part of that investigation, the letter urges the Committee to subpoena Donald Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden to testify regarding their past business dealings, relationships with foreign individuals and entities, gifts or other benefits they have received, and any instances in which their relationship to the President was invoked or understood to provide value,” a press release read.

“A toaster is a wedding gift. A private-island party paid for by a Putin-connected oligarch is something else. Republicans nearly wore out the subpoena machine investigating Hunter Biden’s foreign relationships. We should not unplug it now. ‘Trust us’ was not enough then, and it is not enough now,” Curtis wrote on X.

Curtis wrote:

Trust in our government institutions continues to fall to near historic lows. According to the Partnership for Public Service, only 27% of Americans have trust in the federal government, while 72% say it is “corrupt.” There are many reasons for this, but an important one is the perception that those with close proximity to political power are provided with opportunities, access, and treatment unavailable to ordinary Americans.

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That concern should not depend on which party controls the White House.

For years, serious questions have been raised about members of presidential families using their names and proximity to the President to advance private business interests. The son of former President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, conducted substantial business with foreign entities, including interests in China and Ukraine, while his father held or sought public office. Congressional testimony has produced conflicting accounts about the extent to which his father’s name, presence, or political stature played a role in those relationships. Hunter Biden has denied involving his father in his business dealings, but there is little question that President Biden’s decades in public office gave his son a degree of access, name recognition, and influence that materially enhanced his value in business dealings and opened doors that otherwise may have remained closed.

More recently, questions have arisen about the relationships of President Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., with foreign business figures and the acceptance of significant gifts. These include a lavish wedding afterparty, on a private island, provided by Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev, who reportedly traveled to China as part of a delegation accompanying Vladimir Putin shortly before giving the gift.

These concerns are compounded by Donald Trump Jr.’s active promotion of family-backed cryptocurrency ventures, his continued pursuit of international real estate deals involving direct meetings with foreign heads of state, and his reported investments in defense contracting. This pattern extends to his significant financial and advisory ties to prediction market platforms that depend on favorable federal regulatory decisions being considered by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

These reports raise legitimate questions about foreign access to members of a sitting president’s family and whether such relationships can create actual or perceived expectations of favorable treatment. They also may create expectations of a returned favor that would not be in the best interests of the American people or our allies, and could even create national security vulnerabilities.

The country should not have to accept one standard for the family of a Republican president and another for the family of a Democratic president. Nor should congressional oversight begin and end when control of the White House changes hands.

I therefore respectfully request that the Senate Judiciary Committee launch an investigation into the use of presidential family relationships for private financial benefit, preferential treatment, or access by domestic and foreign interests. As part of that investigation, I urge the Committee to subpoena Donald Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden to testify regarding their past business dealings, relationships with foreign individuals and entities, gifts, or other benefits they have received, and any instances in which their relationship to the President was invoked or understood to provide value.

The purpose of such an inquiry should be straightforward: establish the facts, determine whether existing ethics, disclosure, or anti-corruption laws apply, and identify reforms necessary to prevent the presidency from becoming a vehicle for private enrichment by those closest to it.

Americans deserve confidence that public institutions serve them—not presidents, political parties, wealthy interests, or members of powerful families. Congress has an obligation to pursue credible concerns wherever they lead and without regard to party.

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I appreciate your longstanding commitment to congressional oversight and respectfully ask the Committee to use its authorities to examine these matters thoroughly and transparently.

“Sen. Curtis of Utah has suggested that Don Jr. and I should testify before Congress. I say bring it on. I’ve already given more than seven hours of sworn testimony. More than three dozen witnesses testified across two chambers,” Hunter Biden said.

“I had no foreign business dealings while my father was president. None. I painted paintings, and I still do. I’ll sit next to Don Jr. and testify any time, any place. Eric and Jared can join us too. No need for a subpoena. Let’s all do it tomorrow,” he added.

NBC News shared further:

A Judiciary Committee spokesperson said that the panel received Curtis’ letter and that hearing dates for the committee are extremely limited through the end of the year.

Asked about the letter on Tuesday afternoon, Grassley declined to comment, saying that he hadn’t read it yet.

Durbin, however, voiced support for Curtis’ request.

“For the Committee to ignore this matter is to run the risk of being complicit in a coverup,” he said, noting that Hunter Biden had given a sworn deposition to Congress about allegations against him, while Trump Jr. has not.

Republicans have for years accused Hunter Biden of using his family’s connections to enrich himself through business deals in Ukraine and China, and several House committees investigated the allegations.

The Trump Organization, where Trump Jr. serves as executive vice president, and Hunter Biden didn’t respond to requests for comment. NBC News also reached out to the White House.

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Read the full letter below:

 

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