In an unprecedented move, the White House delivered a stern rebuke to House Republicans, condemning their impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. The scathing letter, addressed to House Oversight Chair James Comer, R-Ky., and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, accused the GOP investigators of “improperly weaponizing the oversight powers of Congress.”
The missive, sent by Richard Sauber, a special counsel to the president, accused the chairmen of being “so determined to impeach the President that you have misrepresented the facts, ignored the overwhelming evidence disproving your claims, and repeatedly shifted the rationale for your ‘inquiry.’”
Sauber emphasized a pattern of distortions and falsehoods in the GOP’s pursuit, stating, “This pattern of distortions and falsehoods lays bare that no amount of truthful testimony or document productions will satisfy you.”
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The impeachment inquiry, initiated by House Republicans in September, alleges that President Biden personally benefited from his family’s foreign business dealings. However, to date, investigators have not produced concrete evidence directly linking the president to these overseas ventures.
House Oversight Chair James Comer defended the inquiry, stating, “If President Biden has nothing to hide, then he should make his current and former staff available to testify before Congress about his mishandling of classified documents.” He affirmed the GOP’s commitment to pursuing the facts and holding President Biden accountable.
In response, the GOP-led House Judiciary Committee asserted, “The White House is TERRIFIED of what we’re uncovering with our impeachment inquiry,” in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
In a significant escalation, the House Oversight Committee issued subpoenas to the president’s close family and their business associates earlier this month. The subpoenas aimed to question them on the evidence collected regarding Biden’s “family’s influence peddling schemes.”
Despite finding that President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, and other business associates made millions from foreign business endeavors, investigators have not presented evidence demonstrating the president’s direct financial benefits.
Sauber criticized the subpoenas as “unjustified requests,” citing “voluminous records and testimony from dozens of witnesses (that) have refuted your baseless allegations about the President.”
The letter coincides with a Nov. 20 deadline for senior White House aides to schedule voluntarily transcribed interviews with GOP investigators on Biden’s handling of classified documents, currently under investigation by special counsel Robert Hur.
Sauber expressed concern that the inquiry “has apparently shifted to focus” on the documents rather than the GOP’s allegations that the president benefited from his family’s dealings. The letter argued that the requests “appear to be motivated by a desire to boost your subpoena numbers … rather than any legitimate investigative interest.”
House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan dismissed the probe as an impeachment inquiry “lacking constitutional legitimacy.” Sauber criticized House Republicans, including Comer and Jordan, for their previous criticisms of House Democrats opening the 2019 impeachment inquiry into former President Donald Trump without a formal vote on the House floor.
The letter urged Comer and Jordan to “reconsider your current course of action and withdraw these subpoenas and demands for interviews.” It concluded by inviting the chairmen to contact Sauber for constitutionally approved processes should they have legitimate requests for White House information.
[Image: U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., leaves during a break in a House Republican caucus meeting at the Longworth House Office Building on October 13, 2023 in Washington, DC.]
[Image: House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, holds a Justice Department email as he speaks with reporters after hearing from U.S. Attorney David Weiss in a transcribed interview before members of the House Judiciary Committee, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023, in Washington.]
