Hunter Biden revealed longtime business partner was VP Biden's 'close confidant and counsel' in 2014 email

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House GOP getting close to last resort after Hunter Biden ignores documents request

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FIRST ON FOX: Hunter Biden admitted in 2014 that his longtime business partner was a "close confidant and counsel" to then-Vice President Joe Biden, according to an email from his infamous abandoned laptop that was verified by Fox News Digital. 

In February 2014, Eric Schwerin, the president of since-dissolved investment fund Rosemont Seneca Partners, emailed Hunter Biden asking him to review a letter of recommendation that he wrote on behalf of then-Vice President Biden and was planning to send to his office to be reviewed.

"Can you take a quick look at the attached? I am going to send it to your Dad (via Kathy) tomorrow and wanted to make sure you think this isn’t too over the top and that you think your Dad would be comfortable sending it," Schwerin wrote in a Feb. 18 email, referring to Kathy Chung, the vice president’s executive assistant. "I am not good at writing these things."

One email referenced the letter of recommendation was for "CFR," which could refer to the Council on Foreign Relations, but Fox News Digital could not confirm this is what the acronym was referring to.

Longtime Hunter Biden business partner Eric Schwerin asked Hunter if he had reviewed a recommendation letter that he had written on behalf of then-Vice President Joe Biden, according to a 2014 email. (Fox News Digital)

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On Feb. 19, a day later, Schwerin followed up with Hunter Biden in a separate email chain about whether he had reviewed the letter of recommendation on behalf of his dad, prompting the younger Biden to say, "Haven't looked yet." On Feb. 22, Hunter Biden responded to Schwerin’s initial email, saying that the recommendation letter was "good," but suggested that he should "tone down the ‘he and my son’ parts" with "he" referring to Schwerin.

Hunter Biden admitted in a 2014 email that his longtime business partner Eric Schwerin was a "close confidant and counsel" to then-Vice President Joe Biden. (Fox News Digital)

"I think it's better to just focus on the fact that you have been a close confidant and counsel to him and just say somewhere something like ‘as a business partner with my son at Rosemont Seneca…,’" Hunter responded.

Schwerin responded a few hours later thanking Hunter and saying his suggestion was the part he was "unsure" about and "was trying to make sure the reader understood there was a real relationship [and] that it wasn't just a letter he was writing for a friend of a friend or something." It is unclear whether Schwerin was successful with the recommendation letter.

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While Schwerin has been named in dozens of news reports over the last couple of years for his close ties to the Biden family and his involvement in foreign business dealings with Hunter, who has been under federal investigation since 2018, he has not been accused of committing a crime.

Longtime Hunter Biden business partner Eric Schwerin, pictured here, has been named in many articles about Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings  (Eric Schwerin/ Facebook Screenshot)

Last week, a spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee told Fox News Digital that they were "in contact with Eric Schwerin’s attorney and expect him to start producing documents to the Oversight Committee soon."

The committee this month asked Hunter Biden and Schwerin to turn over information and records related to Hunter’s foreign business dealings as Republicans probe whether members of the Biden family leveraged Joe Biden's position as vice president to ''sell access around the world."

President Biden has repeatedly said he had no knowledge of his son’s business dealings, despite Fox News Digital previously reporting that he met with at least 14 of Hunter’s business associates while vice president, including Schwerin, who visited the White House at least 27 times between 2009 and 2016.

One of Schwerin's visits – on Nov.17, 2010 – was a sit-down with Vice President Biden in the West Wing and multiple other meetings included those with top Biden aides. On May 14, 2016, Vice President Biden attended a dinner party hosted by Schwerin at an Italian restaurant in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

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Schwerin has also been instrumental in managing the finances of Hunter and the Biden family. Kathleen Buhle, who was married to Hunter Biden from 1993 to 2017, released her memoir last summer, where she revealed Schwerin "managed almost every aspect of our financial life," including Joe Biden.

President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, step off Air Force One, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, N.Y. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

In addition to managing the finances for the Bidens, Schwerin was also instrumental in the planning process for Biden's life after the Obama administration, including the Biden Institute and library at the University of Delaware. Schwerin was in communication with Biden's sister and longtime campaign manager, Valerie Biden Owens, in July 2016, telling Hunter, Owens, longtime Biden confidante Ted Kaufman, and Delaware’s now-chief deputy attorney general Alexander Mackler that he and Hunter had a meeting with multiple University of Delaware officials.

"We suggested that there would be 3-4 people that we would want to bring on board starting in the Fall to get the Center up and running.  Because these positions would have to be advertised, there was some talk of having UD sign a consulting contract with a separate LLC that would pay for the initial 3-4 staff on a short term (4-6 month) basis," Schwerin wrote in the email. "UD is looking into whether that is feasible but they liked the idea.  The 3-4 people could include Valerie, a interim Director, a Program Director and an Administrative Assistant."

Hunter Biden's longtime business partner Eric Schwerin sent an email in July 2016 detailing a meeting he and Hunter Biden had with University of Delaware officials regarding then-Vice President Biden's plans after his tenure as vice president. (Fox News Digital)

In April 2022, Republicans on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform sent a letter to Schwerin demanding information regarding an alleged 2010 transfer of then-Vice President Biden’s tax refund check to his son, as detailed in a 2010 email.

"Your Dad's Delaware tax refund check came today," Schwerin wrote in an email to Hunter on June 10, 2010. "I am depositing it in his account and writing a check in that amount back to you since he owes it to you.  Don't think I need to run it by him, but if you want to go ahead.  If not, I will deposit tomorrow."

Republicans said the email raised questions about what role Hunter played in his father’s finances.

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"If President Biden and Hunter are sharing funds or if President Biden is in debt to his son—the American people deserve to know it especially in light of the millions of dollars Hunter’s businesses have received from countries adversarial to U.S. interests," they wrote at the time.

The White House, Schwerin and Hunter Biden’s attorney did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

Fox News' Kelly Laco, Brianna Herlihy and Haley Chi-Sing contributed reporting.