‘Oversight and accountability are coming’: Home Republicans open long-promised investigation into Biden family5 hours in the past

Home Republicans on Wednesday opened their long-promised investigation into President Joe Biden and his household, wielding the facility of their majority to demand data from the Treasury Division and former Twitter executives as they lay the groundwork for public hearings.

“Now that Democrats not have one-party rule in Washington, oversight and accountability are coming,” Rep. James Comer, chairman of the Home Oversight Committee, mentioned in an announcement.

The Republican-led committee despatched a collection of letters requesting monetary data from the Treasury Division about monetary transactions by members of the Biden household that have been flagged as suspicious exercise. These reviews are routine, with bigger monetary transactions mechanically flagged to the federal government, and aren’t proof on their very own of misconduct.

Lawmakers additionally requested testimony from a number of former Twitter executives who have been concerned within the firm’s dealing with of an October 2020 story from the New York Submit about Hunter Biden, the president’s youthful son. Republicans say that story was suppressed for political causes.

Transferring shortly after taking management of the Home, Republicans are establishing a messy, politically explosive showdown with the White Home that might delve deeply into the affairs of the president’s household and form the contours of the 2024 race for the White Home.

“Of their first week as a governing majority, Home Republicans haven’t taken any significant motion to deal with inflation and decrease People’ prices, but they’re leaping out of the gate with political stunts pushed by probably the most excessive MAGA members of their caucus in an effort to get consideration on Fox Information,” Ian Sams, a White Home spokesman, mentioned in an announcement. The Treasury Division declined a request for remark.

Comer and different Republicans laid out their plan for probing the Biden household the day after clinching a slim majority within the November midterm elections. The Kentucky Republican informed reporters there are “troubling questions” particularly concerning the enterprise dealings of Hunter Biden and one of many president’s brothers, James Biden, that require deeper investigation.

GOP investigations into the Biden household are nothing new. Republican lawmakers and their employees have been analyzing messages and monetary transactions discovered on a laptop computer that belonged to Hunter Biden for the previous 12 months. However Republicans now have subpoena energy within the Home, giving them the authority to compel testimony and conduct a much more aggressive investigation.

Republicans have mentioned issuing congressional subpoenas to international entities that did enterprise with Hunter Biden, they usually not too long ago introduced on James Mandolfo, a former federal prosecutor, to help with the investigation as normal counsel for the Oversight Committee.

Hunter Biden’s taxes and international enterprise work are already beneath federal investigation, with a grand jury in Delaware listening to testimony in latest months. Whereas he by no means held a place on the presidential marketing campaign or within the White Home, his membership on the board of a Ukrainian vitality firm and his efforts to strike offers in China have lengthy raised questions on whether or not he traded on his father’s public service, together with reported references in his emails to the “massive man.”

Joe Biden has mentioned he’s by no means spoken to his son about his international enterprise. And there are not any indications that the federal investigation entails the president in any means.