House Republicans are holding the first hearing of their impeachment inquiry into President Biden in an attempt to justify their case to the public. The Republican chairs of the House Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means Committees released a 30-page memo outlining their view of the factual and legal basis for the inquiry. They are investigating whether Mr. Biden “abused his federal office to enrich his family and conceal his and/or his family’s misconduct.” House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith claimed that the Biden family sold access to power and that the Biden Justice Department protected the Biden brand. However, a law professor testified that there isn’t currently enough evidence for impeachment.
The White House criticized House Republicans for launching the inquiry just days before a potential government shutdown. Democrats on the committee set up a clock counting down the hours until the shutdown begins, highlighting the potential damaging consequences for the American people. However, the top Democrat on the oversight panel suggested that the real reason behind the hearing was a recent Trump social media post where he encouraged Republicans to shut down the government to “defund these political prosecutions against me and other patriots.” He accused Trump’s followers in the House of carrying out his command to shut down the prosecutions.
House committees have been investigating President Biden and his son for months, but so far, no evidence has been produced to show that the president broke the law or benefited financially from his office. The decision to begin the impeachment inquiry does not mean that the committees have reached a conclusion on this matter. The full House traditionally votes to launch an impeachment inquiry, but it has not yet done so. The inquiry is seen by some as a desperate attempt to keep Trump in power, as he is facing federal and state indictments and seeking revenge. The White House has issued a memo aiming to debunk Republicans’ specific claims.