Curtis calls the arrangement corruption and asks the Judiciary Committee to subpoena Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden
U.S. Senator for Utah, in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee and on X
“A toaster is a wedding gift. A private-island party paid for by a Putin-connected oligarch is something else. Republicans nearly wore out the subpoena machine investigating Hunter Biden's foreign relationships. We should not unplug it now. The country should not have to accept one standard for the family of a Republican president and another for the family of a Democratic president. Nor should congressional oversight begin and end when control of the White House changes hands.”
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
CBS News' report, read in full on 2026-09-22, of Sen. John Curtis's September 21, 2026 letter and accompanying X post. It quotes the letter's description of Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings and its stated purpose of establishing facts and identifying reforms.
Official statement
About this source
Curtis's letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and ranking member Dick Durbin, read in full via CBS News' and NY Post's reproduction of its text on 2026-09-22, requesting an investigation and subpoenas of both Donald Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden.
Before the quotation
Curtis had separately called the arrangement "corruption" in social media remarks over the preceding weekend: "Another low, a Russian oligarch paid for a lavish wedding after-party for Donald Trump Jr., which to me just stinks. It's corruption, I don't like it."
After the quotation
A spokesperson for Judiciary Committee Republicans confirmed Grassley received the letter but could not commit to investigating, citing a limited hearing calendar through the end of 2026.
How this statement is classified
Responding to: The Kremlev-funded celebration, alongside Donald Trump Jr.'s business ties to foreign figures, raises legitimate questions about foreign access to a sitting president's family and possible expectations of a returned favor that could create national security vulnerabilities, warranting a congressional investigation and subpoenas of both Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden.
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
Curtis directly characterizes the arrangement as corruption ("which to me just stinks. It's corruption, I don't like it.") and formally requests a congressional subpoena and investigation, a clear denunciation of the episode and a call for accountability.
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- Published here
Should the Senate Judiciary Committee Subpoena Donald Trump Jr. Over His Kremlev-Funded Wedding Celebration?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full case“It's totally allowed. And a lot of people have parties and all. But, as I understand it, he paid them back. I hear he paid them back. That's very common. I've given wedding parties to numerous people.”Read statement
“spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on the President's son. What did he get in return? We need answers.”Read statement
“I have no idea who Umar is, never heard of him, and he didn’t pay for Don and Bettina’s wedding, which took place at a totally different location, and on a different day from the wedding. It was an ‘afterparty’ given in their honor. Not a big deal! I was not present at the party.”Read statement