59 pages • 1 hour read
Peter SchweizerBlood Money: Why the Powerful Turn a Blind Eye While China Kills Americans
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2011A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Key Figures
Peter Schweizer
Peter Schweizer (born 1964) is an American bestselling author, editor at Breitbart News, and consultant. He is known for his inflammatory claims regarding corruption and financial influence in US politics, focusing on Democratic figures such as Hilary Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden. He because famous for his books Clinton Cash, Secret Empires, Red Handed, and Throw Them All Out. His books have been promoted by conservative media outlets and politicians, leading to widespread public discussions. However, several fact-checking organizations and independent journalists have challenged the accuracy of his claims, accusing him of cherry-picking data and presenting misleading or exaggerated conclusions to fit his partisan goals.
Schweizer has a bachelor’s degree in political science from George Washington University and a master’s from Oxford University. He co-founded the non-profit conservative organization Government Accountability Institute with far-right figure Steve Bannon. Throughout his career, Schweizer has written extensively on the intersection of money, power, and politics, and his work has contributed to public discussions on corruption and influence-peddling in both US and global politics.
Famously, Schweizer wrote a provocative article alleging that Hunter Biden, President Joe Biden’s son, has carried out corrupt business deals with China, in which Joe Biden also participated. The claims have been investigated and found baseless (Jacobson, Louis. “Fact-checking claims about Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, and China.” Politifact, 2020).
Joe Biden
Joe Biden (born in 1942) is the 46th President of the United States. He served as vice president from 2009 to 2017 under President Barack Obama. Biden has maintained a moderate, center-left political stance throughout his career, focusing on issues like healthcare reform, foreign policy, and economic recovery.
Biden’s presidency started with the controversial January 6 coup attempt at the United States Capitol, where the supporters of Donald Trump attempted a coup due to unfounded allegations that Trump was the legitimate winner of the presidential elections. The coup was unsuccessful, and Biden was inaugurated as president.
In Blood Money, Biden is portrayed as a figure whose political career and family ties intersect with allegations of illegal financial deals with China. The book claims that Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, and other family members may have benefited from their association with the president, particularly in dealings with China. Schweizer makes the unsubstantiated allegation that these relationships led to significant financial gains, raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest.
Hunter Biden
Hunter Biden is the son of President Joe Biden and his first wife, Neilia Hunter Biden, who died in a car crash in 1972 in which Hunter and his brother, Beau, were also injured. Hunter has a law degree and has worked in a variety of positions, notably the US Department of Commerce. Hunter Biden has been a figure of public interest due to his business ventures and personal life.
Hunter Biden also served on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, and investment positions in China—two positions that have been the ground for multiple accusations of corruption. His involvement in international business, particularly during his father’s tenure as vice president of the United States, has sparked significant scrutiny. In recent years, Hunter has also made headlines for struggles with substance use and his legal issues, which have been widely covered in the media.
In Blood Money, Schweizer explores the alleged financial benefits Hunter received from foreign companies and governments. The book alleges that Hunter leveraged his father’s political standing to secure lucrative deals abroad, particularly focusing on his roles in Ukraine and China. Schweizer suggests that Hunter’s involvement in these ventures, and the substantial financial rewards he received, raise ethical questions about the influence of foreign money on American politics, particularly given Joe Biden’s public office. Schweizer has repeatedly written about Hunter Biden’s supposed links to corruption in Ukraine and China. The allegations have been proven false.
Xi Jinping
Xi Jinping is the General Secretary of the CCP, the most powerful position in China’s political system. He is widely regarded as the most influential figure in Chinese politics since Mao Zedong. Xi has a doctorate in law and ideology from Tsinghua University. Xi Jinping has led China since 2013, steering the country through significant economic growth, increased global influence, and a more assertive foreign policy. Xi’s leadership is characterized by a strong centralization of power, and he has overseen key domestic reforms, anti-corruption campaigns, and a tightening of government control over various sectors, including the economy, media, and civil society. Under Xi, China has also pursued ambitious geopolitical goals, such as the Belt and Road Initiative, which aims to enhance China’s global economic and strategic footprint.
In Blood Money, Schweizer alleges that China, under Xi’s rule, engages in non-military warfare to destabilize the US. He claims that Xi Jinping uses economic incentives and business opportunities to sway decision-making in the US, particularly by forging alliances with corrupt politicians, such as Joe Biden.
Xi’s role in Blood Money underscores the broader concern about China’s use of economic leverage to shape global political outcomes—a central theme in Schweizer’s work. By portraying Xi’s China as actively seeking to exploit the financial vulnerabilities or personal connections of political elites in the US, the book echoes more general anxieties about China’s growing influence under Xi Jinping’s rule, while the US fears a cultural and economic decline due to domestic issues like gun violence, drug use, economic inequality, police violence, and others. Xi is thus a key figure in the book’s arguments about The Erosion of American Values Through Foreign Interference.
