First witness testifies in Hunter Biden's felony gun trial | The Excerpt

On Wednesday’s episode of The Excerpt podcast: USA TODAY Justice Department Correspondent Bart Jansen has the latest from Hunter Biden's felony gun trial. President Joe Biden issues a directive on the border. Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has charged Kenneth Chesebro and other Trump aides in a fake elector scheme. What obstacles remain to President Joe Biden's Gaza cease-fire plan? USA TODAY Reporter Sara Chernikoff talks about young adults living with their parents. A heat dome bakes the Southwest.

Hit play on the player below to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript beneath it.  This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.

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Taylor Wilson:

Good morning. I'm Taylor Wilson. And today is Wednesday, June 5th, 2024. This is The Excerpt.

Today, Hunter Biden's trial has moved to witness testimony. Plus, President Joe Biden issues a directive on the border. And, we look at how more young adults are living with their parents.

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The first witness in Hunter Biden's felony Gun trial, special agent Erika Jensen, started her testimony yesterday. That kicked off the presentation of evidence in the historic case featuring the first criminal charges against a president's child. I caught up with USA TODAY Justice Department correspondent Bart Jansen for the latest.

Bart, thanks for making the time.

Bart Jansen:

Thanks for having me

Taylor Wilson:

So Bart, Hunter Biden's gun trial has begun this week. Before we get to witness testimony, did anything catch your eye during jury selection and opening arguments?

Bart Jansen:

During jury selection, of course the challenge was how do you find anyone in Delaware a relatively small population state who doesn't know the Bidens? So can you find an impartial jury to judge his son and whether he bought a gun in 2018 while either using or being addicted to illicit drugs? And they were able to ask enough questions to shake out a jury of 12, six men and six women. They did have a little bit of a fuss early Tuesday in that one of the jurors said that she was not able to actually attend the trial. They excused one of the jurors before testimony began, but they had four alternates, four women, and so one of the alternates was able to take the place.

So opening arguments went off as planned on Tuesday. Prosecutor Derek Hines basically just cited that Hunter Biden bought a revolver in October 2018. He had to fill out a form at that time asking whether he was using illicit drugs or was an addict and he put an X for no and he allegedly lied to the gun dealer, the guy that gives him the form, and then he possessed the gun, which you're not supposed to do if you're a drug addict. So these three felonies is what charges he faces. And the prosecutor said it was illegal because he was a user of crack and a drug addict. No one is above the law.

Hunter Biden's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said, well, basically he doesn't think the government will be able to prove that Biden intentionally lied. Biden had just completed a rehab program and was trying to get off drugs. And so he looks at the form, maybe thinks, "Well, I'm not using right now. I'm living with a sober partner and that's not part of my life at this moment." So one of the questions that the jury is going to have to decide is, what does using drugs mean? How recent must that have been?

Taylor Wilson:

And Bart, the first witness took the stand yesterday. This is special agent Erika Jensen. Who is she and how did prosecutors and defense lawyers approach questioning yesterday?

Bart Jansen:

She's basically the investigative agent and she was used as a vehicle to get a lot of the documentary evidence into the trial so that they were able to introduce, they've got a bunch of texts and phone messages sort of documents. Like in one text, Biden said he was behind a minor league baseball stadium in Wilmington waiting for a dealer named Mookie.

Another bit of it was Hunter Biden wrote a 2021 autobiography and he talks a lot about his addiction. He used crack cocaine and spent several years suffering from this addiction. That's sort of the heart of the trial, was he still using around the time that he bought the gun? Well, he recorded an audio version of that book so that we don't know yet whether he will take the stand as a witness, but they played portions of that audiobook where he describes hunting for drugs and using drugs and passages like calling it his superpower, finding crack anytime anywhere.

Taylor Wilson:

So you mentioned Hunter Biden. We still don't know if he'll take the stand. Who might be next to do so Bart and what else can we expect here over the next days and weeks?

Bart Jansen:

The prosecution witnesses are expected to include Hunter Biden's former wife, Kathleen Buhle. She accused him in their 2017 divorce of squandering money on drugs, alcohol, and other things. And so that would help chronicle his drug problem. Of course, again, that's 2017 and sort of before the period really at stake with the gun purchase. Although I mean prosecutors clearly think it's important.

In addition, Hallie Biden is the widow of Hunter Biden's brother, Beau Biden, who died of cancer in 2015. Hunter and Hallie had a relationship. Hallie Biden is the one who threw the gun into a grocery store trash can. Hunter only owned the gun for 11 days. It's one of the novelties of this case. He bought it October 12th and it was into a trash can on October 23rd in 2018. Authorities recovered the gun, and that will still be a key piece of evidence in the case. So both of those women are going to provide probably interesting, perhaps provocative testimony against Hunter Biden.

The defense under Abbe Lowell plans to call as a witness Hunter Biden's uncle and the president's brother, James Biden. Now James Biden helped pay for Hunter's rehabilitation, but he's also something of a political lightning rod because Hunter and James Biden did some overseas business deals and congressional Republicans have been investigating them, basically accusing them of trading on the President's name. The accusation from Congressional Republicans is that President Biden may have benefited. Biden, the president, says he did not benefit financially from any of their deals, but calling James Biden promises to probably raise some more political agitation over the trial.

Taylor Wilson:

All right. Bart Jansen covers the Justice Department for USA TODAY. Thanks as always, Bart.

Bart Jansen:

Thanks for having me.

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Taylor Wilson:

President Joe Biden issued a directive yesterday that compels the U.S to turn away migrants who do not enter the country through legal ports of entry anytime unlawful crossings hit an average of 2,500 people a day in a given week. The temporary measures take effect immediately and will remain in place until such crossings dip below an average of 1,500 people a day. Biden backed to failed bipartisan measure earlier in the year that would've authorized him to put similar restrictions in place. But with Congress frozen on the issue, Biden said yesterday that he would act alone using the same authority that former President Donald Trump once relied on to restrict immigration to the U.S. Some Republican lawmakers reacted to the anticipated announcement by asking why Biden did not take the action earlier. House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday that executive action by Biden would be too little, too late and accused him of exacerbating the problems at the border with his policies.

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Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has filed felony forgery charges against an aide and two attorneys who worked for former President Donald Trump in 2020 for their part in designing and executing a plan to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election by submitting false electors for Trump. The charges are the first to be filed by state prosecutors against anyone involved in the scheme that involved 10 Wisconsin Republicans meeting in the state Capitol in December of that year to sign paperwork falsely claiming to be electors for Trump despite his loss to now President Joe Biden. The charges are against Kenneth Chesebro and others. Chesebro is a Wisconsin native and lead architect of the 2020 fake elector plan. Biden beat Trump by about 21,000 votes in Wisconsin. Trump sought recounts in Dane and Milwaukee counties, which confirmed Biden's win. Trump sued and the state Supreme Court upheld the results in December of 2020.

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It's been described as a ceasefire proposal supported by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but everything Netanyahu has said since about it has been a mixed signal and agreeing to it risks a revolt by ultra-nationalists who could topple his government's ruling coalition and leave him vulnerable to legal issues that the war has obscured. And it contained no clear solution to the one critical issue that both Israel and Hamas have appeared to be inflexible on whether any ceasefire plan would be permanent and involve a complete withdrawal of Israel's military from Gaza.

The White House has said it has every expectation that Israel will, if Hamas does, accept the U.S-backed ceasefire plan that President Joe Biden unveiled in a surprise speech last week. Hamas has yet to sign onto the deal though it would include three phases according to Biden, dealing with hostage and prisoner exchanges and eventually Israel's withdrawal of forces from Gaza and reconstruction of the territory. You can read more about the plan and its potential obstacles with a link in today's show notes.

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More young adults are living with their parents. I spoke with USA TODAY reporter say Sara Chernikoff to learn more. Sara, thank you for making the time.

Sara Chernikoff:

Yeah, thanks for having me.

Taylor Wilson:

What's the latest data? Tell us here.

Sara Chernikoff:

The most recent Census Bureau data shows that young men age 18 to 24, about 57% of them are living at home. And for young women in that same age range, it's 55%. That number is up from six decades prior. But the data shows us that in 2020, that rate peaked because a lot of people were moving back home when the pandemic shut down the country.

Taylor Wilson:

Yeah. So I mean, you mentioned the pandemic. Why are more young adults living at home? What are the major factors at play here?

Sara Chernikoff:

The biggest factor is rising prices. Housing is not as affordable as it used to be. Rent prices are very difficult to afford as well, along with student debt. These are just some markers of what young people are dealing with. And so a lot of them are moving back home to save money or just because they aren't able to live on their own.

Taylor Wilson:

How do home living arrangements in general really vary by generation?

Sara Chernikoff:

So that younger group, ages 18 to 24, they're more likely to live at home. And this group includes college students who are living in the dorms but come back home during the summer and winter breaks. And then when you hit the age range of 25 to 34, more men and women are living with their spouses or unmarried partners. And then that rate just increases as that age group increases.

Taylor Wilson:

And going forward, do we expect these numbers around young Americans in particular to continue trending this way?

Sara Chernikoff:

Yeah. Well, if you look at the past six decades, the rate of young people living at home has steadily increased. And so I think it really depends on the housing market, inflation. Are young people going to be able to deal with these rising prices? If those things continue to trend up, I think it will be reflected in more young people living at home.

Taylor Wilson:

Sara Chernikoff is a data and graphics reporter with USA TODAY. Thank you for the insight here, Sara. Really appreciate it.

Sara Chernikoff:

Thanks.

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Taylor Wilson:

Severe heat has arrived for Western states gripped in the nation's first heat dome of the year. Temperatures have reached into the triple digits for cities including Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Redding, California. The heat wave that's been killing hundreds of people in Mexico over the past several weeks is partially to blame for the coming heat. Mexico's intense heat is caused by a powerful heat dome of high pressure that's gradually moving north. The cauldron has parked itself over parts of the Southwest, sending temperature skyrocketing of the entire west is likely to be sweltering. Forecasters at the Climate Prediction Center have determined that June 8th to June 18th will be especially hot in states ranging from Arizona to Idaho. You can check out a number of maps and graphics with the link in today's show notes.

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Following the unprecedented conviction of former President Donald Trump on 34 counts, his campaign raised a record-shattering $53 million in less than a day. What other reverberations might his conviction cause in this hotly contested presidential campaign? Tune into The Excerpt later today, beginning at 4:00 PM Eastern Time, when my co-host, Dana Taylor, sits down with USA TODAY's Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page to hear her insights. You can find the episode right here on this feed.

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And thanks for listening to The Excerpt. You can get the podcast wherever you get your pods. And if you're on a smart speaker, just ask for The Excerpt. I'm Taylor Wilson, back tomorrow with more of The Excerpt from USA TODAY.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: First witness testifies in Hunter Biden gun trial | The Excerpt