WASHINGTON, D.C. – Democratic United States President Joe Biden has nominated a former co-worker of his son’s to the Office of Special Counsel.
The nominee previously worked at a law firm with Burisma Holdings, whom the president’s son worked for, which is housed in Ukraine.
President Biden’s son, Hunter, has been the source of media attention as of late for his ongoing legal battle over three federal gun charges that allegedly were committed in 2018.
Now, he and a former associate are in the headlines once again, this time because his father has nominated a former co-worker, Hampton Dellinger, to serve in the Office of Special Counsel.
The White House announced the nomination during a press release after the person whom Dellinger is replacing, Henry Kerner, had his term expire. Now, if approved, Dellinger will be working in the office that is responsible for ensuring federal employees and applicants are protected from “prohibited personnel practices.”
Dellinger is no stranger to public office as President Biden had previously nominated him for a role as an assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy. Dellinger served in that role from October of 2021 until he left that post in June of 2023.
Dellinger has been involved with Hunter in the past as he was an employee at Boies Schiller Flexner’s Crisis Management and Government Response team where Hunter served as counsel. The firm also represented Burisma Holdings while Hunter served on the board of directors.
In an announcement from the White House, Dellinger’s nomination comes after his “leadership” assisted in the implementation of President Biden’s Executive Order on police reforms. In part, the announcement said:
“Under Dellinger’s leadership, OLP also played a key coordinating role in the Department’s implementation of the President’s Executive Order on Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices as well as the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. In addition, Dellinger worked to enhance the reliability of forensic science in investigations and prosecutions.”
The White House added Dellinger had previously served as a Deputy Attorney General for the North Carolina Department of Justice and served as the chief Legal Counsel in the Office of the North Carolina Governor. The announcement said:
“In those roles, he assisted with investigations and initiatives to reduce Medicaid fraud, fight political corruption, and improve public services. As a partner at regional and national law firms, he has represented whistleblowers and other clients challenging government activities.”
Dellinger’s nomination seemingly drew the ire of some Republicans who showed concern that if confirmed he could have a conflict of interest in a current whistle-blower case involving one of the federal investigations into the President’s son.
One of those Republicans, Senator Chuck Grassley, had his legal team release a statement which read:
“The president thumbed his nose at SSA Shapley and SA Zeigler with the nomination of his son’s former law partner to an agency overseeing their whistleblower cases.
Dellinger should immediately let Congress and the American people know that if he is confirmed, he will recuse himself from any involvement in the whistleblowers’ cases who have risked their careers to expose preferential treatment for the president’s son and the nominee’s former law partner.”
The Senator’s legal team is referencing the allegations from IRS Special Agents Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler who say lawyers for the Justice Department had taken steps to interfere with the investigation into Hunter’s alleged tax evasion.
The nominee previously worked at a law firm with Burisma Holdings, whom the president’s son worked for, which is housed in Ukraine.
President Biden’s son, Hunter, has been the source of media attention as of late for his ongoing legal battle over three federal gun charges that allegedly were committed in 2018.
Now, he and a former associate are in the headlines once again, this time because his father has nominated a former co-worker, Hampton Dellinger, to serve in the Office of Special Counsel.
The White House announced the nomination during a press release after the person whom Dellinger is replacing, Henry Kerner, had his term expire. Now, if approved, Dellinger will be working in the office that is responsible for ensuring federal employees and applicants are protected from “prohibited personnel practices.”
Dellinger is no stranger to public office as President Biden had previously nominated him for a role as an assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy. Dellinger served in that role from October of 2021 until he left that post in June of 2023.
Dellinger has been involved with Hunter in the past as he was an employee at Boies Schiller Flexner’s Crisis Management and Government Response team where Hunter served as counsel. The firm also represented Burisma Holdings while Hunter served on the board of directors.
In an announcement from the White House, Dellinger’s nomination comes after his “leadership” assisted in the implementation of President Biden’s Executive Order on police reforms. In part, the announcement said:
“Under Dellinger’s leadership, OLP also played a key coordinating role in the Department’s implementation of the President’s Executive Order on Advancing Effective, Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practices as well as the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. In addition, Dellinger worked to enhance the reliability of forensic science in investigations and prosecutions.”
The White House added Dellinger had previously served as a Deputy Attorney General for the North Carolina Department of Justice and served as the chief Legal Counsel in the Office of the North Carolina Governor. The announcement said:
“In those roles, he assisted with investigations and initiatives to reduce Medicaid fraud, fight political corruption, and improve public services. As a partner at regional and national law firms, he has represented whistleblowers and other clients challenging government activities.”
Dellinger’s nomination seemingly drew the ire of some Republicans who showed concern that if confirmed he could have a conflict of interest in a current whistle-blower case involving one of the federal investigations into the President’s son.
One of those Republicans, Senator Chuck Grassley, had his legal team release a statement which read:
“The president thumbed his nose at SSA Shapley and SA Zeigler with the nomination of his son’s former law partner to an agency overseeing their whistleblower cases.
Dellinger should immediately let Congress and the American people know that if he is confirmed, he will recuse himself from any involvement in the whistleblowers’ cases who have risked their careers to expose preferential treatment for the president’s son and the nominee’s former law partner.”
The Senator’s legal team is referencing the allegations from IRS Special Agents Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler who say lawyers for the Justice Department had taken steps to interfere with the investigation into Hunter’s alleged tax evasion.
For corrections or revisions, click here.
The opinions reflected in this article are not necessarily the opinions of LET
Comments