White House shuts down question about unacknowledged Biden granddaughter
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre shut down a reporter's question Wednesday concerning President Biden's seventh grandchild, the estranged daughter of his son Hunter Biden who he has so far refused to acknowledge.
President Biden failed to acknowledge his seventh grandchild and fifth granddaughter, the estranged daughter of his son Hunter Biden, during remarks at a Women's History Month reception at the White House on Monday.
"I see a future for all Americans, a future for my daughter and my four granddaughters — by the way, they’re incredible," Biden said. "You should meet my granddaughters. Oh, you think I’m kidding. I’m not."
On numerous occasions in recent years, Biden, 81, has claimed he only has six grandchildren — ignoring five-year-old Navy Joan Roberts, the daughter born out of wedlock to Hunter and Arkansas-based mother Lunden Alexis Roberts.
Last July, amid backlash he had received for not acknowledging her existence, Biden spoke out publicly for the first time about his fifth granddaughter.
President Biden gives remarks alongside first lady Jill Biden during a Women’s History Month reception in the East Room of the White House on March 18, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
"Our son Hunter and Navy’s mother, Lunden, are working together to foster a relationship that is in the best interests of their daughter, preserving her privacy as much as possible going forward," Biden said in a statement to Fox News Digital at the time.
"This is not a political issue, it’s a family matter," he added. "Jill and I only want what is best for all of our grandchildren, including Navy."
Biden and First Lady Jill Biden had repeatedly refused to acknowledge Navy, frequently omitting her by claiming they only have "four granddaughters."
December 2022 marked the second Christmas season in a row that the White House left Navy out of a Christmas stocking display. After acknowledging her publicly in the summer of 2023, first lady Jill Biden did away with hanging stockings for her grandchildren and pets over the mantle in the State Dining Room for the 2023 Christmas season.
WHITE HOUSE SCRAPS CHRISTMAS FIREPLACE STOCKINGS AFTER BIDEN ACKNOWLEDGES GRANDCHILD FOR FIRST TIME
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden listen as Maria Shriver, the former first lady of California, speaks during a Women’s History Month reception in the East Room of the White House on March 18, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Prior to that, in 2020, Biden incorrectly said he and the first lady had five grandchildren, forgetting about then-newborn Beau Biden, but completely leaving out Navy.
At a White House "take your child to work day" event in April 2023, Biden claimed to only have six grandchildren. "I have six grandchildren, and I’m crazy about them. And I speak to them every single day. Not a joke," he said.
Hunter Biden had long denied being Navy's father, but a 2019 DNA test proved otherwise. He has since fought to lower child support payments. Navy was born in August 2018, and Roberts filed a paternity suit in May 2019. Both parties agreed to temporary child support following the DNA test results.
Hunter Biden and Roberts reached an agreement to settle the paternity and child support suit in March 2020, according to the Democrat-Gazette. The case was then reopened after he requested changes to the child support payments.
Hunter Biden looks on during the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on April 18, 2022. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)
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In June 2023, Hunter settled his Arkansas child support case with Navy Joan's mother. A court filing showed Hunter agreed to give his daughter some of his paintings, and the child's mother agreed to withdraw her counterclaim to change their child's last name to "Biden."
The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Fox News' Brandon Gillespie and Joe Schoffstall contributed to this report.
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