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My favorite headline of the last couple of days.....


http://inthecapital.streetwise.co/2014/05/14/joe-bidens-son-now-heads-the-largest-gas-company-in-ukraine/

Joe Biden's Son Now Heads the Largest Gas Company in Ukraine


Image via Flickr/richiec (CC 2.0)

On Monday, Burisma Holdings, the largest private gas producer in Ukraine, announced on their website that Hunter Biden would be joining their board of directors and would serve as head of their legal affairs unit. Hunter is a lawyer by trade, who was also appointed to the Department of Commerce during the Clinton administration and was the vice president of Amtrak during the Bush years. Oh, and he also happens to be Vice President Joe Biden's son.

“Burisma’s track record of innovations and industry leadership in the field of natural gas means that it can be a strong driver of a strong economy in Ukraine,” Hunter Biden said in a statement. “As a new member of the Board, I believe that my assistance in consulting the Company on matters of transparency, corporate governance and responsibility, international expansion and other priorities will contribute to the economy and benefit the people of Ukraine.”

While Hunter Biden's decision to join a company in such a volatile region is a bit out of the ordinary, his involvement with Burisma Holdings doesn't pose any conflict of interest with the foreign policy aims toward Ukraine laid out by the Obama administration. Vice President Biden has been a staunch opponent of Russian involvement in Ukraine, particularly in the energy sector. He has publicly pledged U.S. support to Ukraine to reduce their dependence on Russian energy, a goal that Hunter Biden's new role could help to achieve.

However, Biden is certainly taking some risks in being involved in such a prominent role in such a volatile country. Government ethics rules do not prevent grown children of politicians from having a financial stake in private sector companies, but they do require that politicians excuse themselves from any policy decisions where a family member plays a roll. This means Joe Biden, who has taken the lead in pushing for an energy independent Ukraine, would have to excuse himself from making policy should Burisma become involved in Ukraine's transition to energy independence.

"Hunter Biden and other members of the Biden family are obviously private citizens, and where they work does not reflect an endorsement by the administration or by the vice president or president," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said during a briefing in response to questions about the potential conflict of interest.

Kendra Barkoff, a spokeswoman for Vice President Biden, said he "does not endorse any particular company and has no involvement with this company."


Eric D. Schwerin
eschwerin@rosemontseneca.com

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