Hunter Biden showed up on Capitol Hill on Wednesday but said he planned to testify in a public hearing, escalating a standoff with GOP investigators.
President Joe Biden’s son has insisted, through his attorney, that he wants to testify publicly and not in a private meeting. Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) has denied that request, demanding Hunter Biden sit for a closed-door deposition Wednesday.
“I'm here today to answer at a public hearing any legitimate questions Chairman Comer and the House Oversight Committee may have for me,” Hunter Biden told reporters.
“Republicans do not want an open process,” he added.
The two Republicans leading the investigation — Comer and Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) — have threatened to start contempt of Congress proceedings against Hunter Biden if he did not appear for the deposition.
With the House leaving town this week until January, that expected fight is likely to drag into next year. And Comer and Jordan need near unanimity among the House GOP to ultimately hold the younger Biden in contempt of Congress, though even if they clear that hurdle, there’s no guarantee the Justice Department would ultimately decide to prosecute him.
It was unclear even into Wednesday morning whether Hunter Biden would appear for the deposition. GOP investigators subpoenaed Hunter Biden in November for a closed-door meeting, but his attorney, Abbe Lowell, responded that the president’s son was willing to testify in a public hearing.
House Republicans countered that they would videotape the deposition and quickly release a transcript of the interview, in a failed bid to assuage Lowell’s concerns that Hunter Biden’s testimony would be selectively leaked or mischaracterized. Democrats have criticized Comer, in particular, for not releasing transcripts for several closed-door interviews and rejecting Hunter Biden’s offer to interview publicly.
“What the Republicans fear most is sunlight and the truth,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee.
In addition to Hunter Biden, GOP investigators have subpoenaed several individuals including James Biden, Joe Biden’s brother, and Rob Walker, a Hunter Biden business associate. Republicans have said lawyers for both are in talks with committee staff. They’ve also requested voluntary interviews with other family members.
But Republicans view Hunter Biden as a top target in their sweeping impeachment inquiry aimed at the president. The House is expected to vote as soon as Wednesday to formalize that inquiry, which was launched back in September.
Top Republicans believe only one GOP member will vote no on that: retiring Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.). They’ve managed to chip away at opposition from centrists and vulnerable Republicans in Biden-won districts.
Formalizing the inquiry is expected to give Republicans more legal power as they look to enforce their demands for documents and interviews. Though the White House has defended its level of cooperation with the investigation, officials have also pointed back to a Trump-era Justice Department opinion to argue that the inquiry, and subpoenas stemming from it, lack legitimacy without a formal vote to legitimize.
Republicans’ top potential legal targets include two Justice Department tax officials and a former White House counsel, each of whom they’ve requested interviews with. But Comer added that he believed the resolution could also help with their ongoing battle with Hunter Biden, noting that his counsel had previously “implied that this wasn’t a legitimate investigation.”
