Hunter Biden has appeared in public for the first time since getting married to his new South African wife, Melissa Cohen.
Hunter, 49, and Cohen, 32, were present at the second Democratic debate to show support for his father, Joe Biden, in Detroit, Michigan where he went toe to toe with Kamala Harris and Corey Booker.
The appearance was preceded with a post on Twitter showing a photo of Barack Obama‘s former vice president, his wife, Jill Biden, and grandchildren, as well as Hunter’s new wife, Melissa.
Cohen, who is a filmmaker, was dressed very elegantly, and many commended her on her stylish appearance and the way she complimented her husband.
The marriage between the two has been the subject of some controversy after it came to light that they had only known each other for a mere ten days before deciding to get married.
It has also been confirmed that the couple exchanged their vows 24 hours after Hunter proposed.
Hunter, who was in a rush to get married, was willing to pay certified Wedding Officiant Maria Kharlash $500, (twice the amount she usually charges), for her services.
Talking to the Daily Mail, Kharlash recounted the surprise conversation with Hunter: “He called me and said, ”I want to get married today”, I get these type of calls all day long. I said I couldn’t do it and he wasn’t too happy. I said, ”how about we wait until tomorrow”, but he said he had to fly to the east coast the next day, ”It has to be done today,” he said. He desperately wanted to get married that night.”
Kharlash went on to reveal: “I was already at home, it was like 4-5pm, and I wanted to watch an NBA game, but he insisted. I felt sorry for him, so I said okay okay, no problem, just pay me something extra for my trouble and we agreed.”
Kharlash confirmed that no family or friends were present at the wedding ceremony that took place at Cohen’s tiny Los Angeles apartment with her dog as the only witness.
The marriage announcement also came not long after Biden broke up with Hallie Biden, the widow of his late brother, Beau.
The overall state of the relationships in that family has been the subject of much media attention, and not all of it positive.
Cohen is said to be an activist who travels around the world in support of indigenous tribes and has had a marriage of her own before getting involved with Biden.
The two have gone through a very quick romantic period, although it is not clear if their relationship could be based on something more than what observers are seeing at the moment.
The Biden family, who is very open about Hunter’s addictions, has not commented on the quick marriage.
However, Cohen’s relative did issue a statement saying they are happy to have Hunter as one of their own.
