First lady Jill Biden defended her son Hunter Biden against an onslaught of attacks from Republicans in an interview that aired Thursday, saying the barrage of allegations against him has been “cruel.”

“I think what they are doing to Hunter is cruel,” the first lady said in an interview with MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski. “And I’m really proud of how Hunter has rebuilt his life after addiction. You know, I love my son and it’s had — it’s hurt my grandchildren. And that’s what I’m so concerned about, that it’s affecting their lives as well.”

The first lady lamented the shift in rhetoric in the country when asked about the constant attacks from Republicans against the Biden family, including from former President Trump, who frequently calls President Biden “incompetent.”

“I mean, to look at it, what we used to have, and what the other side, the extremists have turned this country into. I mean, we would never see things like that, say 10 years ago,” Jill Biden said.