House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced a formal impeachment inquiry into US President Joe Biden on Tuesday, claiming that investigations from multiple House Republican committees had uncovered “serious and credible allegations” against the president.
Speaker McCarthy said the House Oversight Committee will coordinate the inquiry, chaired by James Comer (R-KY).
The speaker provided few specifics regarding the accusations against Biden, though he listed several broad categories such as “abuse of power,” “obstruction,” and “corruption.”
He subsequently cited a handful of detailed examples, referencing a few phone calls, dinners, meetings, and millions of dollars in payments to the Biden family through various shell companies.
Though Speaker McCarthy pledged to provide further details at a later meeting, Democrats quickly sounded off on the announcement.
White House spokesperson Ian Sams released a statement condemning the move as a politically motivated witch hunt, claiming that Republicans have turned up no evidence of wrongdoing following nine months of investigations.
Sams also targeted McCarthy for deviating from his previous position of holding a floor vote for impeachment authorization before launching the proceedings.
The formal impeachment inquiry of President Biden represents a significant step for House Republicans. According to Fox News, which first broke the story, the House GOP conference plans to meet on Thursday morning among key committee chairs to lay out the latest findings and the status of their respective investigations into the Biden family.
Given the polarized nature of Washington politics, the inquiry could have far-reaching implications for American politics in the coming months and the 2022 mid-term elections.
It remains to be seen whether Speaker McCarthy’s formal impeachment inquiry will further clarify the allegations against the president and his family or merely set the stage for the next chapter of a highly politicized investigation.
