I don’t think I believed that Joe Biden had any shame, given the history that I’ve seen, particularly over the last few years.

But it turns out that he can be shamed, after all. At least when it comes to Navy Roberts, his grandchild by his son Hunter and Lunden Roberts.

Biden has received a lot of criticism for failing to acknowledge the four-year-old, particularly when he’s always talking about his other grandchildren, even emphatically noting he has “six” grandchildren (not seven). He was chastised by liberal media over it, including in an article in the New York Times by Maureen Dowd, in which she pointedly scolded Biden, telling him in her headline, “It’s Seven Grandkids”

It looks like that scolding might finally have sunk in. Or Biden realized it was going to hurt him during the campaign if he didn’t say something to acknowledge her, which is probably more likely. They’re trying to clear away all the stumbling blocks, and he’s being told that was a big one in many people’s minds.

So, Biden finally acknowledged little Navy as existing, in a statement released late afternoon on a Friday, exclusively to People magazine.

NEW: In a pre-written statement published at 5pm on a Friday night, Joe Biden acknowledges his seventh grandchild for the very first time.

It took him more than four years. pic.twitter.com/N1TrbojQMo

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 28, 2023

“Our son Hunter and Navy’s mother, Lunden, are working together to foster a relationship that is in the best interests of their daughter, preserving her privacy as much as possible going forward,” President Biden said in a statement provided exclusively to PEOPLE.

Navy, one of the president’s seven grandchildren, has recently been the subject of headlines as Republicans have criticized the president for previously touting his “six grandchildren.”

“This is not a political issue, it’s a family matter,” the president’s statement continues. “Jill and I only want what is best for all of our grandchildren, including Navy.”

Wow, could they do any less in a statement than that, or make it any shorter or more pro-forma than that? Or make it seem any more like they don’t want to talk about it than dropping it late on a Friday?

How long did that take for Joe to get around to acknowledging her? It took him four years and a heck of a lot of prodding to do the right thing.

The statement makes it appear like it was just decided now that she was the granddaughter or they just found out when, of course, they’ve known for years. They didn’t have to wait for this new child support matter to be settled to make this statement; they could have done this long ago. They’re only making the statement now because of the criticism, probably from Dowd, because they know it is hitting home.

I think it’s right that they acknowledge her, and they should have done this a while ago. I also think this is just about doing anything he can to help his election chances. But I have to say that I think the child would be far better off if she didn’t come under the influence of the truly dysfunctional Biden family—when we see how twisted some of them can be. And just because Biden was pushed into finally making the briefest of all possible statements late on a Friday, don’t expect to see her being invited to any Biden soirees any time soon.