Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, releases a statement to reporters outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023, regarding public testimony before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.
Bill Clark | Cq-roll Call Inc. | Getty Images
House committee announced report Hunter Biden on Monday recommended that the men be held in contempt of Congress for their “blatant defiance” of subpoenas related to the impeachment investigation of their father, President Joe Biden.
The House Judiciary Committee and Oversight Committee report said Hunter Biden “must be held accountable for his misconduct.”
The report’s findings were not surprising. Three days before the report was released, the committee chair announced that the document would be discussed at a committee hearing on Wednesday. and vote on a resolution recommending contempt charges against the president’s son.
If the Republican-led committee passes the resolution, it will move to the full House for a vote. The chamber, which has a narrow Republican majority, could then vote to refer the matter to the Justice Department, which will ultimately decide whether to file criminal charges.
Republicans began contempt proceedings in December after Hunter Biden refused to appear in a private deposition with Congressional investigators investigating corruption allegations against the Democratic president and his family.
Mr. Biden offered to testify publicly in Congress instead, but the oversight committee chairman, Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), rejected the offer.
On the same day he was scheduled to appear in court for a private deposition, Biden appeared outside the Capitol, defending his business record and slamming the Republican investigation.
“There is no evidence to support the allegation that my father was financially involved in my business, as that was never the case,” he said in a prepared statement before his departure.
Comer and Judiciary Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said in a statement Friday announcing Wednesday’s hearing that Biden’s defiance “will be referred to the appropriate U.S. attorney’s office for prosecution. Of course,” he said.
Biden’s lawyer, Abby Lowell, did not respond to a request for comment.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, the ranking Democrat on the oversight committee, criticized Republicans for pursuing a contempt finding despite Biden’s offer to testify publicly.
“Instead of accepting yes for an answer, Chairman Comer obstructed his own ill-fated investigation by denying Hunter Biden the opportunity to answer all of the committee’s questions in front of the American people and the world,” Raskin said. said. statement Friday.
Mr. Raskin and other Democrats have noted Mr. Comer’s previous comments suggesting he would be open to having Hunter Biden speak at the hearing.
“Hunter Biden is very welcome to come before the committee,” Comer said in a Newsmax interview in September.
Comer’s critics also accuse him of refusing to publicly release transcripts of witness depositions. undercut their claims.
As his father seeks a second term in office, Hunter Biden faces a hefty legal schedule, including two federal criminal cases on separate tax and gun-related charges.
Biden has pleaded not guilty to charges of possessing a handgun while using illegal drugs. His lawyers filed a motion last month in federal court in Delaware to dismiss the charges.
He is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday on nine tax-related charges in federal court in Los Angeles.