Former first lady Jill Biden said Tuesday she regrets not discussing her son Hunter Biden’s drug addiction more openly during the Biden administration, telling an audience in New York that she now recognizes the value of transparency about substance abuse and recovery. Speaking at the 92nd Street Y in a wide-ranging interview with “The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg, Biden said her husband’s recent cancer diagnosis had reshaped her perspective on what matters.
“No, I’m not angry. I mean, what’s the purpose of anger now?” Jill Biden said when asked about pressure from Democrats for her husband, former President Joe Biden, to end his 2024 reelection bid after a poor debate performance against Republican Donald Trump.
The comments came at the first public event promoting her White House memoir, published Tuesday. She said she had put life in perspective after Joe Biden was diagnosed with prostate cancer that spread to his bones.
Jill Biden said that not talking enough about Hunter Biden’s addiction during her time as first lady was a missed opportunity to help others facing similar circumstances. She said she now realizes that being open about his substance abuse and his recovery can offer hope to people in the same situation.
Related coverage — Jill Biden previously detailed her husband’s exit from the 2024 race and the events surrounding it in her memoir, in material that has been reported on in recent months.