Hunter Biden left the door open to a 2028 presidential run over the weekend, telling New York radio host John Catsimatidis that if he got Catsimatidis’ endorsement, “I may have to” run.
The comment came during an appearance on Catsimatidis’ WABC program The Cats Roundtable, where the host pressed Hunter Biden on whether he had any interest in seeking office himself. It is a notable change in tone from just weeks earlier, when Biden said he hadn’t given a run any real thought and joked that if he ever announced one, people should check whether he had relapsed.
Biden stopped well short of an actual declaration. Pushed further on the idea, he pointed to the depth of the Democratic field rather than positioning himself as the answer, saying the party has an “incredible bench” of potential 2028 candidates to draw from.
What he says he actually cares about
Asked what issues matter most to him right now, Biden steered away from electoral politics entirely. He said his focus is on “the 50 million Americans that are still suffering sick… with their addictions,” a subject he has spoken about publicly many times given his own history.
He also used the interview to note a personal milestone, saying he recently passed seven and a half years of sobriety, while again acknowledging the substance abuse struggles that played out publicly during his father’s time in office and before.
Why the shift in tone stands out
Hunter Biden has never held elected office and has no campaign infrastructure, donor network, or public polling to suggest a realistic path to a Democratic nomination. His father’s legacy and his own legal history, including a federal conviction later pardoned by President Biden, would almost certainly dominate any campaign he mounted.
Still, the remark is likely to get outsized attention precisely because of who said it. Even a half-joking answer from a Biden about 2028 lands differently than it would from almost anyone else not currently viewed as a serious contender, if only because it keeps his family’s name in a conversation Democrats would generally rather move past.
Sources: The Hill · Irish Star
