Jones slams Lawler for backing House GOP's 'sham' Biden impeachment inquiry

PEARL RIVER — Former Rep. Mondaire Jones fired an early salvo in one of New York's key congressional races on Wednesday, blasting Rep. Mike Lawler outside his Rockland County office for supporting House Republicans' "baseless" impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.

Standing with a cluster of sign-holding supporters at a press conference outside the Blue Hill Plaza office complex, Jones accused the Republican freshman of backing a "sham" probe that has found no wrongdoing by Biden while the GOP-led House neglects more important issues for his constituents.

“Despite months of wild-goose-chasing and lying to the public, Republicans in Congress like Mike Lawler have found no shred of evidence — no shred of evidence — implicating Joe Biden in the behavior of his son, Hunter Biden,” Jones said.

Jones, who plans to challenge Lawler next year for New York's 17th Congressional District seat, held his event one week after the House voted along strict party lines to open a formal impeachment inquiry. That vote simply continued the work that three House committees were already doing but could lead to articles of impeachment if Republicans decide to proceed.

Lawler, who couldn't be reached on Wednesday, said in a statement after last week's vote that he didn't see grounds for impeachment at this stage but supported looking further. He cited past payments by foreign businesses to Biden's brother and son, and what he said was the White House's withholding of some documents demanded by congressional subpoenas.

"Is it enough to impeach the president today? No. Not for me,” Lawler said then. “However, the White House's refusal to turn over additional information, including their failure to comply with subpoenas, is deeply concerning and has necessitated a more formal approach to get the whole truth.”

"We will follow the facts and evidence wherever they may lead,” he added.

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Democrats have pounced on the inquiry as a political liability for vulnerable Republicans with tough re-election races ahead in 2024. A Democratic group called the Congressional Integrity Project announced the start of an ad campaign on Wednesday that uses the inquiry to attack Lawler and the 16 other GOP House members representing districts Biden won in 2020.

Jones represented the 17th District for one term before Lawler, who narrowly beat another Democrat — five-term Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney — to win the seat last year after congressional lines were redrawn. Jones and MaryAnn Carr, a former Bedford supervisor and councilwoman, are competing to be Lawler's Democratic challenger next November.

Three Jones supporters from Westchester and Rockland counties spoke after him at Wednesday's press conference, taking turns denouncing the impeachment probe and blasting Lawler and House Republicans for misguided priorities.

"Why would Lawler support an inquiry that President Biden correctly called a baseless political stunt?" asked Carissa Weiss of Armonk. "I'll tell you why. Because Mike Lawler and his Republican colleagues are entirely beholden to MAGA extremists and their petty, vindictive, insurrectionist leader."

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Jones later said he wouldn’t be surprised if Republicans impeach Biden after their inquiry. But he said their doing so would be “really sad,” given that Lawler and other New York Republicans told voters last year that they were running for Congress to improve public safety and lower costs for working families.

“But that is not what we have seen,” Jones said of their campaign messages. “And every moment that is spent on this baseless impeachment inquiry, every taxpayer dollar that is spent on that, is time and money not spent on actually improving the lives of working people here in the lower Hudson Valley.”

“And I think Republicans are going to pay the price in the polls next November,” Jones added

Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him at cmckenna@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Jones rips Lawler over House GOP's 'sham' Biden impeachment inquiry