FLASHBACK: President-elect Biden pledged not to interfere with DOJ investigations in 2019

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Grand jury investigation into Hunter Biden over possible tax fraud

Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy details the allegations on 'Special Report'

More than one year before Hunter Biden disclosed that he was the subject of a Delaware U.S. Attorney’s office investigation into his “tax affairs,” President-elect Joe Biden said he would not interfere with the Justice Department’s handling of any case if he were to win the presidency.

Joe Biden commented on his view of DOJ investigations during a debate with other Democratic presidential candidates on Nov. 20, 2019. During the debate in Atlanta, the future president-elect was asked whether he would support a criminal investigation of President Trump once he left office.

HUNTER BIDEN 'TAX AFFAIRS' UNDER FEDERAL INVESTIGATION

“I would not direct my Justice Department like this president does. I'd let them make their independent judgment,” Biden said in response. “I would not dictate who should be prosecuted or who should be exonerated. That's not the role of the president of the United States. It's the attorney general of the United States, not the president's attorney, private attorney.”

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Biden went on to say that he would “follow the law” and “let the Justice Department make the judgment as to whether or not someone should be prosecuted, period.”

Hunter Biden drew intense scrutiny and sharp criticism from the Trump campaign ahead of Election Day regarding his overseas business dealings. Critics accused the president-elect’s son of leveraging his father’s political influence to enrich himself through deals in China and Russia.

In a statement late Wednesday, Hunter Biden acknowledged that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware was investigating his “tax affairs.”

“I learned yesterday for the first time that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware advised my legal counsel, also yesterday, that they are investigating my tax affairs,” Hunter Biden said in a statement. “I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors.”

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A government source told Fox News that the investigation was predicated on Suspicious Activity Reports, or SARs, related to his overseas business dealings. The investigation purportedly began in 2018.

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Joe Biden has repeatedly denied that he or his son engaged in any wrongdoing related to Hunter Biden’s work as a business consultant. The president-elect has yet to personally address the Delaware U.S. Attorney’s office investigation into Hunter Biden’s tax record.

“President-elect Biden is deeply proud of his son, who has fought through difficult challenges, including the vicious personal attacks of recent months, only to emerge stronger,” the Biden-Harris transition team said in a statement on the investigation.

Biden has yet to announce his pick for attorney general. Top candidates are said to include former Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.