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Hunter Biden, former President Joe Biden's son, suggested in an interview earlier this month that Democrats should "turn the temperature up" when asked about extremism on the fringes, although he cautioned he wasn't supporting political violence.
"Wide Awake Podcast" host Joshua Rubin asked Biden whether both sides needed to turn the temperature down with regard to extremism, and said it was only "escalating." Biden said that it wasn't going to happen.
"I'm going to get myself in trouble for saying this. No, we need to turn the temperature up. We need to turn the temperature up, and we need people to see it for what it is. And what I mean by that is this: I do not believe that we are going to get to the bottom until we get to the bottom. And I want to get to the bottom faster rather than through this slow kind of process of just being picked apart — a death by a thousand cuts here," Biden said.
He said that he "100%" did not mean violence, and added, "what I mean by turning the temperature up is we need to speak truth to power."
Hunter Biden, the son of former President Joe Biden, is seen during an event to celebrate the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
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"We need more people in my party, in the Democratic Party, more people in elected positions or in positions of power, or the talking heads that get paid to go on MSNBC [now MS NOW], they need to start talking about this as it is, not as a conjecture about whether or not the Supreme Court [sic] and this debate," Biden added.
He also named CNN host Jake Tapper and called him out for a recent conversation he had with President Donald Trump over text.
"You have people like Jake Tapper who are having hardball discussions with Donald Trump over text. Like, what the f--- are you talking about, man? That’s not journalism. That’s a complete and utter abdication of responsibility as a journalist," Biden alleged.
Former President Joe Biden, left, and his son, Hunter Biden, stand side-by-side. (Getty Images)
Tapper was also called out by MS NOW host Lawrence O'Donnell at the time over the text interview.
"CNN presented a so-called interview… that they can’t even prove was Donald Trump. They called it ‘breaking news,’ they called it ‘an exclusive, new interview with President Trump.’ That’s what they called it, before the interviewer said this," O’Donnell said before playing video of Tapper saying Trump answered his questions via "text."
A CNN spokesperson defended Tapper at the time, telling Fox News Digital, "Jake Tapper is a journalist — CNN journalists will always take any opportunity to ask questions of those in power and share what we learn with our audience."
Biden also called out CNN host Abby Phillip and CNN political commentator Scott Jennings, who frequently appears on Phillip's show.
CNN’s Jake Tapper was mocked by MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell over his text interview with President Donald Trump. (Getty Images)
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"He goes out there, and he says, just parrots the talking points of the administration. And everybody does that, has done that in the past, but not when they’re parroting what are verifiable lies. And then Abby Phillips, ‘Well, that’s just not true, Scott,'" Biden continued.
CNN did not immediately return a request for comment.
The former president's son argued that the media ecosphere was being "gobbled up by oligarchs."
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Hanna Panreck is an associate editor at Fox News.
