The saga surrounding Hunter Biden, son of the president, has continued for years with him avoiding any accountability for his alleged corruption schemes. Federal agencies the president controls haven’t been helpful as congressional investigators work to get answers for how the Biden family has operated in politics and business over the years.

The U.S. House wants Hunter Biden to answer questions as part of the corruption-focused impeachment inquiry into his father, but he appears to be trying to manipulate the process. This new twist from Biden has Republicans calling foul, and the House Speaker calling out the legal wranglings of the president’s son.

Past precedent in House investigations calls for witnesses to give testimony under deposition and then proceed with public testimony before a committee. Hunter threw the GOP a curveball after he decided to change the process with a proposal of his own.

The Daily Wire reported that Biden offered to publicly testify instead of complying with a subpoena for a deposition. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) dismissed the offer.

“It’s the precedent,” Johnson told Fox News. “Every investigation of Congress in the modern era, the deposition has come first, and the public testimony follows. Why would we break that precedent now?”

House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) said the offer from Biden and his legal team was “unacceptable.” She believes that “the only correct response to a subpoena is a deposition.”

There comments came after Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY), who is leading the impeachment inquiry and issued the subpoena, rejected the terms offered by Hunter Biden’s lawyer. The lawyer’s response is ironic considering how House Democrats handled past investigations of former President Donald Trump.

The attorney, Abbe Lowell, argued that a “public proceeding would prevent selective leaks, manipulated transcripts, doctored exhibits, or one-sided press statements.”

Without first holding a deposition of Biden, Stefanik believes Democrats could turn public testimony into a counterproductive public display. An open hearing allows each party member on the committee five minutes to question a witness. These time allotments often devolve into political rants.

“It becomes a very public press opportunity for the Democrat to politicize,” Stefanik said. “We want to go about this from a legal and factual perspective and the only way to go about that is through a deposition.”

Comer is holding his ground and insisting that Biden must testify in a closed-door deposition set for mid-December. After that, Comer indicated, Biden could testify in an open hearing in the future.

Comer publicly stated that Johnson is backing the precedent of the process. Comer said House Republicans could hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress if he does not comply with the subpoena.

Key Takeaways:

• House Republicans fire back at Hunter Biden over an unprecedented offer.
• Biden and his lawyer suggest a new process for his testimony before Congress.
• Republicans don’t want Democrats to turn the process into a press opportunity.

Source: The Daily Wire