Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Joe Biden's dealings with the family business warrant an impeachment investigation, said the speaker of the Republican House of Representatives, arguing that the abuse of power by the US president was tantamount to the case of Richard Nixon.
Kevin McCarthy accused the Biden administration of obstructing congressional investigations and said they would seek help, the strongest hint that his party is ready to try to impeach the president.
In recent months, the Republican-led House of Representatives has launched a series of investigations into Biden, his administration and his relatives.
They focused on Hunter Biden amid statements by two whistleblowers IRS that the president's son received DOJ benefits over his tax cases.
Hunter pleaded guilty to two minor tax offenses and avoided prosecution on weapons charges as part of an agreement that Republicans branded as «lover». deal.»
Republicans are also investigating Hunter's dealings in Ukraine, China, and elsewhere, and suggest he used his father's political power to line his own pocket.
No evidence of wrongdoing
The White House has repeatedly insisted that Biden had nothing to do with his son's business dealings, and there is no evidence of any wrongdoing on the part of the president.
But Mr. McCarthy said Mr. Biden's administration used US government leverage as a weapon to «deny Congress» of its ability to exercise oversight, saying «this is something we haven't seen since Richard Nixon.»
“We only saw where the information took us,” he told Fox News. «But it rises to the level of an impeachment inquiry, which gives Congress the most powerful power to obtain the rest of the necessary knowledge and information.»
An impeachment inquiry would be the first step towards introducing articles of impeachment. The process could drag on and drag on for the campaign season.
Having Mr. Biden's impeachment trial would be politically risky for Republicans in the House of Representatives, especially in swing districts. Joe Biden with his son Hunter. Photo: AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
Mr. McCarthy thwarted a previous attempt by far-right Republicans to move a resolution to impeach Mr. Biden, knowing that many Republicans would side with the Democrats to vote against the measure, fearing it would alienate swing voters.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives said at the time, «We will not use impeachment for political purposes.»
However, he is coming under increasing pressure from his party's right wing, which wields excessive power given the Republican advantage. narrow majority in the House of Representatives.
Supporting Trump
Mr. McCarthy is also facing pressure to show his support for Donald Trump ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
Mr. McCarthy has not yet supported Mr. Trump or any other Republican candidate running for president.
White House Press Secretary Ian Sams said that «the Republican Party's desire to pursue the US president, regardless of the truth, seems bottomless.» .
«Instead of focusing on the real issues that Americans want us to address, like further lowering inflation or creating jobs, the GOP wants to make this a priority,» Sams tweeted.
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Meanwhile, the Justice Department said it would bring to the testimony of David Weiss, the U.S. Attorney who led the Hunter Biden investigation.
«We are deeply concerned about any misrepresentations of our work,» which the Department said that may “unduly undermine public confidence in the impartial administration of justice.”
Jamie Harrison, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said Mr. McCarthy “convinced that the majority in the House of Representatives is nothing more than an arm” of Trump’s 2024 campaign.
“Clearly, Donald Trump is the real speaker of the House of Representatives,” Mr. Harrison said. «This is another political stunt to help Trump.»
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