Former President Joe Biden traveled to Ireland on Tuesday to watch his son Hunter receive a top university honor.
The 83-year-old appeared at Trinity College Dublin alongside former first lady Jill Biden, daughter Ashley Biden, Hunter’s wife Melissa, and their son Beau. Irish Taoiseach Michael Martin revealed the visit on social media, posting a photo with the Biden family. “Very pleased to welcome former US President @JoeBiden and his family to Dublin,” Martin wrote. “We reflected on his strong Irish roots and previous visits, appreciating his lifelong support for Ireland.”
Biden spokesman TJ Ducklo confirmed the trip in a statement to The Post. “President Biden is supporting his son Hunter who received the Gold Medal for Outstanding Contribution to Culture and Public Discourse from Trinity College Dublin,” Ducklo said. He added that Biden’s memoir Promise Me America would be released November 17 and was available for preorder.
The medal, awarded by the College Historical Society known as the Hist, is the highest honorary award from the 1770-founded debating society. Past recipients include Burmese democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi, the late Sen. Teddy Kennedy, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Iranian human rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi, and musicians Bob Geldof and Patti Smith.
Trinity College cited Hunter Biden’s “recent advocacy on the state of American politics and media, as well as for matters of addiction and recovery” as grounds for the honor. Hunter, who has spoken openly about his crack cocaine addiction and sobriety struggles, addressed the ceremony with his family present. “To be able to come back to Ireland and be with my whole family, it means the world. I’m incredibly honoured by the HIST that they would think of me, thank you,” he said. He added that his father is “great, he’s good, he’s here!”
The former president was seen blowing his son a kiss and growing teary-eyed during the acceptance. Local Irish news reports described Biden as appearing frail and moving slowly, traveling with a large Secret Service detail and convoy of black SUVs.
The overseas trip follows Biden’s announcement that prostate cancer, which has spread to his bones, would limit his promotional schedule for his memoir. He wrote on X that the disease “slows me down.” “What that means is, unfortunately, I won’t be able to do as many conversations about my book as I’d hoped. However, I’m hopeful the words on the page speak for themselves,” he posted. Biden has received radiation and hormone therapy as part of his treatment.
Hunter Biden’s public profile has included controversial moments beyond his substance abuse disclosures. He was convicted of gun and tax crimes in June 2024 before his father pardoned him in the final months of his presidency. His laptop leak featured images from his drug addiction period, and he has posted profanity-laced social media content.
Last summer, Hunter unleashed six f-bombs in 30 seconds during a rant against the Trump administration’s deportation push. “Am I not supposed to feel for someone? Am I going to be like all these Democrats say, ‘You have to talk about and realize that people are really upset about illegal immigration’? F–k you,” he said in the video. “How do you think your hotel room gets cleaned? How do you think you have food on your f–king table? Who do you think washes your dishes? Who do you think does your f–king garden?”
Protesters gathered outside the Dublin hall during Tuesday’s ceremony, shouting “blood, blood on your hands” and “shame on you” while delivering anti-war speeches.
Biden’s ancestral ties to Ireland trace to County Mayo and County Louth, and he has long incorporated Irish poets into his speeches. The former president did not address how the transatlantic journey was possible when a book tour was not, and Ducklo’s statement did not respond to that question.
Hunter Biden’s memoir Promise Me America is scheduled for release on November 17.