Biden says he remains 'very proud' of Hunter after plea deal

U.S. President Joe Biden continued to voice confidence in his son, Hunter, on Tuesday after the junior Biden agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors on tax and gun charges.

Asked by reporters on his trip to California if he spoke to Hunter Biden on Tuesday, the president said "I'm very proud of my son." He did not respond when asked if he encouraged his son to take the plea deal.

Federal prosecutors in the U.S. state of Delaware announced the tentative agreement earlier Tuesday morning.

Hunter Biden has agreed to plead guilty to two counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax, and another count of illegal possession of a firearm by a drug user, U.S. Attorney for Delaware David Weiss wrote in a letter to the district court clerk.

The tax charges are misdemeanors, and Weiss wrote that Biden agreed to certain unspecified conditions with respect to the felony firearms charge. Details of the plea agreement were not immediately known but they will have to be accepted by a federal judge.

The gun charge is related to Biden's possession of a Colt Cobra .38 caliber handgun in October 2018, Weiss said in a separate court document. The gun was shipped and transported between states, he alleged.

Republicans pounced on news of the agreement with former President Donald Trump, who is himself set to go to trial on 37 federal charges in August, saying the deal "cleared up hundreds of years of criminal liability by giving Hunter Biden a mere 'traffic ticket.'"

Hunter Biden has a long history of drug abuse and publicly acknowledged his struggle with addiction on multiple occasions during his path to recovery.

Weiss, the prosecutor leading the case, is an appointee of former President Donald Trump. The firearms charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.