Three months after then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., announced an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, the House is set to vote Wednesday to formally authorize one. It’s a move that McCarthy dodged in September because he knew he didn’t have the support to pass any authorizing resolution in the face of skepticism from moderates and members from districts Biden won.
But Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is plowing ahead despite the risk of a failed vote. He’s banking on his slim majority holding together in the name of asking Biden questions. What will happen when Republicans don’t get answers they like, though, is a whole other question.
But when has something like a lack of evidence ever stopped congressional Republicans from making allegations of corruption?
So far, the investigation has been less about the president himself and more about the business conducted by his son Hunter and his brother James over the last decade or so. There’s been no evidence that shows Biden used the office of the vice presidency or the presidency improperly to enrich himself or his relatives. But when has something like a lack of evidence ever stopped congressional Republicans from making allegations of corruption?
The White House has been tolerant and accommodating of the GOP’s probes — to a point, that is. While the Biden administration has turned over requested documents related to the investigation, last month special counsel Dick Sauber, who was hired last year to focus on countering GOP fishing trips, called out the fact that the House hadn’t voted to launch an inquiry as he insisted that Republicans withdraw subpoenas against Biden’s family members. The subpoena for Hunter Biden to testify, in particular, has been a subject of contention: His lawyer last month said his client would testify but demanded it be at a public hearing rather than behind closed doors.
The resulting standoff has been enough to persuade some previous GOP holdouts to vote…
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