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Instead of agreeing to the terms of the subpoena, Hunter Biden’s legal team responded that he was willing to answer questions but only in a public setting, arguing that he believed that Republicans would selectively leak or misrepresent his testimony. The committee did not agree to those terms and warned that if he did not appear on the scheduled date he would be held in contempt. Washington — House Republicans said Friday that they will move forward next week with an effort to hold Hunter Biden, President Biden's son, in contempt of Congress after he refused to comply with a congressional subpoena for closed-door testimony. Witness after witness brought in for closed-door interviews in January and February built a pile of testimony that refuted core tenants of the inquiry. Abbe Lowell, Hunter Biden's attorney, argued those subpoenas were invalid since they came before the House voted to approve the inquiry. In a letter on Friday, he told Reps. James Comer and Jim Jordan, the respective committee chairs, that his client would now comply with a new subpoena for testimony.
Hunter Biden defies Republican subpoena in visit to the Capitol, risking contempt of Congress charge
House Republicans hit pause on effort to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress - NBC News
House Republicans hit pause on effort to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress.
Posted: Tue, 16 Jan 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
House Republicans plan to move forward next week with holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress after the president’s son defied a congressional subpoena to appear for a private deposition last month. WASHINGTON — House Republicans plan to move forward next week with holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress after the president’s son defied a congressional subpoena to appear for a private deposition last month. "It's clear the Republican chairmen aren't interested in getting the facts or they would allow Hunter to testify publicly," Hunter Biden's attorney, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement. "Instead, House Republicans continue to play politics by seeking an unprecedented contempt motion against someone who has from the first request offered to answer all their proper questions."
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House Republicans to move forward on holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress - ABC News
House Republicans to move forward on holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress.
Posted: Fri, 05 Jan 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
"Instead of working with President Biden to address issues important to the American people, like lower costs, congressional Republicans' top priority is to go after President Biden with politically-motivated attacks chock full of long-debunked conspiracy theories," said White House spokesperson Ian Sams. "President Biden is not going to let these political attacks distract him from focusing on Americans' priorities, and we hope congressional Republicans will join us in tackling them instead of wasting time and resources on political revenge." A successful vote to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress would refer the matter to the Justice Department, which would then decide whether to pursue criminal contempt charges. The announcement came two days after Hunter Biden made a surprise appearance at a meeting of the House Oversight Committee, one of two panels that voted to recommend holding him in contempt of Congress. He appeared with Biden for a surprise news conference in December in front of the Capitol and sat next to him last week in the House Oversight markup hearing for a resolution to hold Biden in contempt of Congress.
If Nothing Else, GOP’s Impeachment Inquiry Has Dinged Biden When it Comes to ‘Trustworthiness’
A committee source said the timing was coincidental — Jan. 10 is the first full day the House will be in session this year. In an announcement first shared with NBC News, the Oversight Committee said it will hold a markup on Jan. 10 at 10 a.m. Before the markup, both committees will release a report outlining their rationale for holding Hunter Biden in contempt. But even without cameras, the president’s son failed to deliver the smoking gun Republicans were hoping for, leaving the inquiry at a standstill. Even GOP Rep. Darrell Issa remarked after the first hour of questioning that Hunter Biden was prepared for the interview.
A political scientist at John Jay University, Brian Arbour, tells the Sun that he’s skeptical that the impeachment effort accomplished much for the Republicans politically — at least at this stage. On Thursday, Comer also sent letters to the heads at the National Archives and Records Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Treasury Department requesting documents on the Biden family's buisness negotiations domestic and abroad. He also sent letters requesting information regarding the relationship and communication between Eric Schwerin, Edward Prewitt and Georges Bergès, who alledgedly had buisness dealings and management with the Biden family. In a press conference on Thursday, Comer accused the Biden family of defrauding the United States, tax evasion, violating several laws and money laundering, among other accusations.
Even the House GOP’s impeachment of another favorite target, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, ultimately fizzled out, with the House narrowly impeaching him and the Senate quickly dispatching the charges without a trial. Similarly, an April Marquette University Law School poll found that some 47 percent of likely voters nationally see Mr. Biden as having behaved corruptly, compared to 63 percent who said the same of Mr. Trump. A Gallup survey released in early April found that fewer than half, or 46 percent, of Americans feel that Mr. Biden is trustworthy. For comparison, a September 2020 Gallup poll found that a majority, 52 percent, thought the then-candidate was trustworthy. The investigation may serve its purpose if that purpose was intended to be more political than practical.
Comer and Jordan responded to that offer later in the day but gave no indication that they intend to reissue their subpoenas. Sources familiar with the production said Biden has no editorial control in the filmmaking process for the film he is participating in. Morris’ payments to the IRS were not a focus of federal prosecutors, according to multiple sources familiar with the five-year investigation. Morris is mentioned in the federal indictment filed in December as a “personal friend” who provided about $200,000 for Hunter Biden’s rent. NBC News has reported that Morris began advising Hunter Biden in 2020 and arranged to pay about $2 million in outstanding tax obligations to the IRS for him in 2020 and 2021. Biden’s Hollywood attorney, Kevin Morris, is scheduled to sit for a transcribed interview with House Oversight, Judiciary and Ways and Means committee staff members Thursday, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
"There is no precedent for the U.S. House of Representatives holding a private citizen in contempt of Congress who has offered to testify in public, under oath, and on a day of the Committee's choosing. Chairman Comer repeatedly urged Hunter Biden to appear at a Committee hearing, and Hunter Biden agreed," he said. Comer has grown increasingly frustrated as his investigation appears to be at a dead end, with Republicans resigned to the reality that they don’t have the votes to impeach the president, multiple sources with direct knowledge of the situation told CNN. House Republicans are promising to soldier on with their impeachment inquiry into President Biden despite a flagging case against the president, a conference divided on moving forward, and ambiguity as to whether impeachment has proved to be an effective political tool. Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, denounced Comer's decision to hold a vote on the contempt resolution, saying there is no precedent for the House holding a private citizen who has offered to testify publicly in contempt of Congress. “The Committees are interested in understanding the nature and purpose of any loans to or payments on behalf of Hunter Biden that may have occurred while Joe Biden was either a candidate for public office or holding public office.
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Comer and Jordan said in a statement that they have "significant evidence suggesting President Biden knew of, participated in, and benefitted from his family cashing in on the Biden name." Meanwhile, Comer single-handedly invited the president to testify at a hearing, but he rescinded the invitation after the White House declined, pivoting instead to asking for documents and written answers. The October election of Johnson, who was fully supportive of the investigation, provided a glimmer of hope. Despite the internal criticism, Comer still maintains the confidence of Speaker Mike Johnson and his leadership team. Comer’s co-leads, House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan and House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, are also fully behind the work. Some in the House GOP, granted the anonymity to speak freely, said they felt he often overpromised and underdelivered, with one GOP source who worked on the investigation telling CNN that people wished Comer had “reined in” his rhetoric.
Among other things, the Committees intend to understand the terms of such loans’ you made to Hunter Biden and what benefits you may have received as a result of providing financial assistance to President Biden’s son,” the committee chairmen wrote in a letter to Morris. The committee chairmen -- Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio -- said they believe Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings were the result of influence peddling based on his father's political status. Instead of appearing for the deposition, Hunter Biden held a media event in front of the Capitol building where he took no questions, but stated emphatically that his father was not involved in any of his business dealings. “There is no evidence to support the allegations that my father was financially involved in my business because it did not happen,” Hunter Biden said. Republicans announced they would hold him in criminal contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with his subpoena for a closed-door deposition, sending lawmakers back to their districts at the end of 2023 with a huge win. Another boost of momentum came when Republicans united to formally authorize the inquiry after a clash with the White House, which claimed Republicans’ subpoenas for testimony and records were invalid without a floor vote.
While Republicans say their inquiry is ultimately focused on the president, they have taken particular interest in Hunter Biden and his overseas business dealings, from which they accuse the president of personally benefiting. Republicans have also focused a large part of their investigation on whistleblower allegations of interference in the long-running Justice Department investigation into the younger Biden’s taxes and his gun use. The Republican-led House Judiciary and Oversight committees will prepare a resolution next week to hold President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, in contempt of Congress for defying their subpoenas to appear for a closed-door deposition. Republicans have also focused a large part of their investigation on whistleblower allegations of interference in the long-running Justice Department investigation into the younger Biden’s taxes and his gun use.
"If you issue a new proper subpoena, now that there is a duly authorized impeachment inquiry, Mr. Biden will comply for a hearing or deposition," Lowell wrote. "Chairman Comer does not want Hunter Biden to testify in public, just as he has refused to publicly release over a dozen interview transcripts, because he wants to keep up the carefully curated distortions, blatant lies, and laughable conspiracy theories that have marked this investigation," he said in a statement. "However, the facts and the evidence all show no wrongdoing and no impeachable offense by President Biden."
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