Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, makes a press release to the press outdoors the U.S. Capitol about testifying publicly to the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
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Hunter Biden on Wednesday defended his business record and denied that his father, President Joe Biden, was financially concerned in it. He spoke to reporters outdoors the Capitol, the place he defied a congressional subpoena to testify behind closed doorways.
“I’m happy with my authorized profession and business profession. I’m happy with my time serving on a dozen completely different boards of administrators. And I’m happy with my efforts to forge international business relationships,” Hunter Biden stated.
“Let me state as clearly as I can. My father was not financially concerned in my business — Not as a working towards lawyer, not as a board member of Burisma, not in my partnership with a Chinese personal businessman, not in my investments at residence nor overseas, and positively not as an artist,” Hunter stated.
“There’s no proof to help the allegations that my father was financially concerned in my business, as a result of it didn’t occur,” Biden added.
He reiterated that he would solely comply with testify in public, somewhat than behind closed doorways. Republicans have already rejected that supply.
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, stated later Wednesday that they may start contempt of Congress proceedings towards Biden for defying the subpoena.
“We won’t present particular remedy as a result of his final title is Biden,” the House committee leaders stated in a press release.
Comer, Jordan and different Republicans are main the investigation into whether or not the president corruptly profited off his household’s business dealings. They have accused Biden of mendacity about his involvement in his kinfolk’ money-making schemes.
House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) (L) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) discuss to reporters within the Rayburn House Office Building on December 13, 2023 in Washington, DC.
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Little proof has emerged displaying Biden accepted bribes or in any other case financially abused his public workplace as president or as vp. Democrats have accused Republicans of politicizing the impeachment energy.
The House is ready to vote later Wednesday to formalize an impeachment inquiry.
An impeachment investigation may prolong nicely into subsequent yr, casting a shadow over Biden as he runs for reelection. If the Republican-majority House votes to question him, the Democratic managed Senate will maintain an impeachment trial to resolve whether or not to take away him from workplace.
Former President Donald Trump, the main 2024 Republican major candidate, was impeached twice. He was acquitted each occasions by a Republican managed Senate.
Comer, Jordan and their allies “have distorted the details, by cherry-picking strains from a financial institution assertion, manipulating texts I despatched, enhancing the testimony of my buddies and former business companions, and misstating private data that was stolen from me,” Hunter stated outdoors the Capitol.