House GOP still looking for evidence as they hold first hearing on impeachment inquiry for President Biden
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House Republicans held a hearing Thursday morning into whether there are grounds to impeach President Joe Biden over his family’s foreign business dealings and his alleged abuse of power.
“At least 10 times, Joe Biden lied to the American people that he never spoke to his family about their business dealings,” said House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., in his opening remarks.
He said that Biden claimed there was an “absolute wall” between his personal and professional life.
“Let’s be clear: there was no wall. The door was wide open to those who purchased what a business associate described as ‘The Biden Brand,’” Comer added.
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The Kentucky representative pointed to the latest evidence his committee uncovered: Two wire transfers that Hunter Biden, the president’s son received, came from Beijing at a time when his father was campaigning for the presidency. President Biden’s home was “listed as the beneficiary address,” Comer said.
House Democrats say there is no evidence against President Biden
The lawyers for Hunter Biden, who faces federal felony charges alongside the congressional investigation into his family, told CNN earlier this week that President Biden’s address was used in the wire transactions because it was the younger Biden’s only permanent address at the time.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., the ranking member of the committee, leveled attacks on the Republican conference for not being in agreement over launching an impeachment inquiry in the first place, quoting moderate GOP lawmakers like Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., who said it’s “the dysfunction caucus at work” about his more conservative colleagues.
“Back in the reality-based world, the majority sits completely empty-handed with no evidence of any presidential wrongdoing, no smoking gun, no gun, no smoke,” Raskin said. “They got nothing on Joe Biden.”
Raskin also criticized lawmakers for diverting their intention from the impending government shutdown which could be just days away.
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What did witnesses say in the impeachment inquiry hearing?
A 30-page memo, obtained by Politico on Wednesday, detailed the direction the inquiry will take — starting from President Biden’s time as vice president as well as his time out of office before running for president, and whether he profited from his son’s business dealings. This memo was signed by the chairs of the House Judiciary Committee and the House Committee on Ways and Means.
The committee invited four witnesses, who didn’t have firsthand knowledge about Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings or President Biden’s alleged involvement.
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Two of the witnesses, Bruce Dubinsky, a forensic accounting expert, and Jonathan Turley, a professor at the George Washington University Law School, agreed there isn’t any “decisive evidence” that links President Biden to profits from his son’s business dealings.
“As the age-old adage goes, when there’s smoke, there’s fire,” Dubinsky said, according to USA Today. “The critical question facing the American people today is whether behind the smokescreen clouding the Biden family and associates’ businesses was there, or is there a fire?”
Meanwhile, Turley said he doesn’t believe “the current evidence supports an actual article of impeachment, but that is commonly the case in presidential impeachments.”
White House reacts to impeachment inquiry
Ian Sams, the White House spokesman for oversight and investigations, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, Thursday: “These are the Republicans’ own witnesses!”
“Admitting there is not evidence to warrant this impeachment stunt,” he said. “Proving this is nothing more than a baseless wild goose chase.”
In another statement, the White House called out GOP lawmakers for wasting time instead of serving Americans.
“There are 61 hours and 55 minutes until the government shuts down because of extreme House Republicans’ chaos and inability to govern,” the statement said.
“The consequences for the American people will be very damaging, from lost jobs, to troops working without pay, to jeopardizing important efforts to fight fentanyl, deliver disaster relief, provide food assistance, and more. Nothing can distract from that.”
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