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House GOP will subpoena Biden family, says Republican chairman

by Emily Brooks - 08/10/23 1:47 PM ET

House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) said that his committee, which has been investigating the foreign business dealings of President Biden’s family members, will eventually move to subpoena the Biden family — a move Comer hinted could include the president himself.

“This is always going to end with the Bidens coming in front of the committee. We are going to subpoena the family,” Comer said Thursday on Fox Business.

“We know that this is going to end up in court when we subpoena the Bidens. So we’re putting together a case, and I think we’ve done that very well. We’ve shown the bank records,” Comer said. “If I had subpoenaed Joe and Hunter Biden the first day I became chairman of the committee, it would have been tied up in court and the judge would have eventually thrown it out. … We have put together a case that I think would stand up in any court of law in America.”

Comer’s subpoena tease comes a day after his committee released a third staff memo outlining millions of dollars in foreign funds paid to Hunter Biden and his former associates while Joe Biden was vice president.

Hunter Biden walks to a waiting SUV after arriving with US President Joe Biden on Marine One at Fort McNair in Washington, DC, July 4, 2023, as they return to Washington after spending the weekend at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland. (Saul Loeb / AFP via Getty Images)

That memo noted that the committee has so far only subpoenaed banks tailored to specific individuals and companies, but has not yet issued subpoenas for bank records for members of the Biden family.

Comer, though, indicated that subpoenas for members of the Biden family would not be imminent.

“We want to talk to about three or four more associates first,” Comer said. “We’ve been communicating with a couple of them. We’re trying to bring them in just like we did [former Hunter Biden business partner] Devon Archer for a transcribed interview. If they don’t come in voluntarily, then they’ll be subpoenaed.”

The Oversight chairman acknowledged that it would be an uphill battle to get information from the president through subpoenas, pointing to the years-long legal battles that ensued after congressional Democrats subpoenaed former President Trump’s financial records.

“It’s very difficult. You know how hard the Democrats tried to get Donald Trump. So this is very difficult,” Comer said.

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In response to Comer indicating he will issue subpoenas, the White House pointed to a release it sent Wednesday following the Oversight Committee GOP staff memo.

“Comer and his fellow extreme Republicans in Congress are now admitting they haven’t uncovered any proof of involvement or wrongdoing by President Biden. They simply will continue to spread innuendo and lies as they pursue a baseless impeachment stunt to attack the president,” said Ian Sams, White House spokesperson for oversight and investigations, pointing to a portion of the memo in which Republicans argued they do not have to show direct payments to President Biden in order to demonstrate corruption.

“House Republicans can’t prove President Biden did anything wrong, but they are proving every day they have no vision and no agenda to actually help the American people,” Sams said. “For them, it’s all about partisan games and political attacks that serve themselves and get themselves attention on rightwing media – not about taking on the big challenges facing our country.”