The United States House of Representatives has taken a vote to formally begin the process of impeaching President Joe Biden.
Legislators supported a resolution that Republicans claim will give them greater authority to get evidence and compel compliance by voting along party lines.
While Mr. Biden was vice president, three House committees run by Republicans are accusing him of corruption and bribery.
However, they have not yet provided any proof of misconduct, and Mr. Biden claims that his opponents are “attacking me with lies”.
Republicans hold a tenuous eight-seat majority in the lower chamber of Congress, which voted 221 to 212 on Wednesday afternoon to approve the investigation.
Although authorising an investigation does not mean supporting impeachment, it does increase the possibility that Mr. Biden may be impeached by the House at some point.
House Speaker Mike Johnson stated in a statement that while the chamber “will not prejudge the investigation’s outcome,” it is “unavoidable to ignore the evidentiary record.”
In the middle of an election year, the president may have a lot of difficulties if there is a formal impeachment investigation that results in a House vote and a Senate trial.
However, the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats, is almost guaranteed to exonerate the president even if the House decides to impeach him in the end.
Following the vote, Mr. Biden released a statement saying, “The American people need their leaders in Congress to take action on important priorities for the nation and the world.”
“Instead of doing their job on the urgent work that needs to be done, they are choosing to waste time on this baseless political stunt that even Republicans in Congress admit is not supported by facts.”
Republican Tom Cole of Oklahoma said in a heated argument just prior to the vote that his colleagues were forced to introduce the legislation.
Claim[ing] that the White House was “stonewalling” the impeachment investigation, he described it as a “sad day for myself, the institution and the American people”.
However, what they have written off as “an extreme political stunt” has irritated Democrats.
According to Maryland’s Jamie Raskin, the inquiry “isn’t a whodunit, it’s a what is it”.
“It’s like an Agatha Christie novel, where the mystery is – what’s the crime?” he continued.
In September, former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy announced the investigation, claiming Republicans had discovered a “culture of corruption” including Mr. Biden.
Republicans have had one hearing on the investigation, and in that hearing, two of their expert witnesses stated that there was not yet sufficient evidence to impeach the president.
According to the oversight committee, between 2014 and 2019, the Biden family and its business connections allegedly received more than $24 million (£19 million) from foreign sources in China, Kazakhstan, Romania, Russia, and Ukraine.
James Comer, the head of the committee, has said that Joe Biden’s family members, especially his son Hunter, sold the then-vice president access and profited off “the Biden brand”.
The president “spoke, dined, and developed relationships with” his son’s business colleagues, the man has further said.
After the vote on Wednesday, Mr. Comer informed reporters that the inquiry received unanimous Republican support, which he said sent a “strong message” to the administration.
“We have a simple question that a majority of Americans have – what did the Biden family do to get millions?” he stated.
Mr. Biden has stated both before and during his administration that he never discussed business with Hunter Biden or his associates and that his son did not profit from immoral abroad endeavours.
In addition, the White House refuted the assertion that it is not willing to cooperate, denouncing the investigation on Wednesday as a misuse of authority on the part of House Republicans.
Republicans have long considered Hunter Biden to be his father’s biggest electoral risk.
The elder Mr. Biden’s reputation among American voters could be harmed if and when they are able to connect his commercial activities and personal behaviour to the president.
In November 2024, as the 81-year-old Biden prepares for reelection, he is expected to fight against the 77-year-old, twice-impeached former president and current front-runner for the Republican nomination, Donald Trump.
Mr. Trump has called on his allies on Capitol Hill to expeditiously impeach his successor, vowing retaliation against his political rivals.
BBC
