Prof. Painter Quoted in Reuters on Appointment of Vice President Biden's Son to Board of Ukrainian Gas Company

Professor Richard Painter was quoted in a Reuters article that has since been translated into many different languages worldwide on Vice President Biden's son R. Hunter Biden's membership on the board of a Ukrainian gas company with close ties to Russia. "It's very clear the [federal financial conflict of interest] statute does not cover this, even if the statute applied to the vice president," said Painter. Painter said he does not believe that Vice President Biden should step back from working on issues affecting energy in Ukraine for appearance's sake. Painter did note, however, that "If I had been the lawyer for the vice president, I would have said, 'Try to get your son to get off that board,'" Painter said.