The Biden Impeachment Inquiry Was Inevitable

The inquiry against President Biden, which provides Congress with enhanced subpoena power, was inevitable given the circumstances.

NOTE: For the sake of clarity, Hunter Biden will be referred to as "Mr. Biden" and Joseph R. Biden will be referred to as "President Biden". Joe Biden will also be referred to as ‘the President.’ This should alleviate any confusion, as both men are technically "Mr. Biden".

Ahead of his reelection, the specter of the Hunter Biden scandal looms large over an already troubled Biden presidency. The president, on top of his domestic failings, finds himself in even hotter water. Speaker McCarthy's impeachment inquiry could reveal President Biden's role in his son's alleged influence-peddling. This inquiry is not a partisan witch hunt, as Senator Murphy has claimed. It is Congress’ prerogative to hold the president accountable for his actions, which may have violated the law and his oath of office.

And it is just that. An inquiry. Still a long way from impeachment.

Deferring to the federal government has not worked. The Department of Justice has, regardless of intent, obstructed any attempts at a serious investigation. Public trust in the Justice Department and other government agencies has eroded in recent times. Mr. Garland has attempted to present himself as ‘playing fair’, by elevating David Weiss to the position of special counsel. This is odd, as Mr. Weiss serves to this day as United States Attorney for the District of Delaware. As per 28 CFR § 600.3 (2023), a Special Counsel shall be appointed from outside the United States Government.

This elevation of Mr. Weiss provides a convenient series of deflections for President Biden. "He was appointed by Trump!" will be a cry that Mr. Weiss is capable of exercising impartial justice here. It's a moot point—Mr. Weiss now works for Mr. Garland, who works for President Biden. If special counsel had come from outside of the present DOJ, as per the statue, there would be less room for skepticism.

Another convenient cover is that both Mr. Biden and President Biden can deflect any inquiry with one simple answer. A refusal to comment on any ‘active investigation.’ The Biden Administration has played up this defense frequently and is just hoping and praying that the whole thing goes away.

We know, from bank records, that at least $20 million in payments from foreign entities have been gifted to the Biden family. We know that in spring 2014, Mr. Biden was placed on the board of directors of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma and paid $1 million per year. It was odd that he was given a board position, as a known drug user who had just been discharged from the Navy for cocaine usage. Surely it was due to his expertise in the energy sector? Curious how he seemed to have none. Mr. Biden also received, in separate bank accounts, $3.8 million from CEFC China Energy, an energy company tied to the Chinese Communist Party.

On tape, President Biden admitted using his office, then as Vice President, to pressure the Ukrainian government to fire a prosecutor who was investigating his son's business dealings. When the ‘laptop from hell’ emerged, a close ally Antony Blinken, now Secretary of State, immediately rallied the intelligence community to boast that it was 'Russian disinformation.' On the debate stage, President Biden lied to the American people categorically, saying that "My son has not made money in terms of this thing about—what are you talking about—China. I have not had it."

On the campaign trail from 2019–2020, President Biden stated that "I’ve never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings." Of course, we now know that Mr. Biden called his father up to 20 times, on speaker phone, while speaking with business associates. Representative Dan Goldman dismissed this as "casual conversation" and "niceties about the weather." Obviously, Mr. Biden would be placing his father on the phone with various foreign entities to talk about meteorology.

To be blunt, the idea that his screw-up son seemingly landed these board positions on merit, received all this money, and placed his father on the phone for ‘casual conversation’ is laughable. We know President Biden had dinners with his son’s business partners. Two IRS whistleblowers have testified, under oath, that the Justice Department purposefully curbed any investigation into Hunter Biden's taxes. We also know that Hunter Biden's business partners were in collusion with White House aides.

Recovered emails also discredit President Biden’s claims of ignorance. In 2015, Eric Schwerin, Mr. Biden’s business associate, was caught sending talking points to President Biden's communication director. The purpose of these quotes was to respond to media inquiries relating to Hunter’s role at Burisma. His communications director responded only hours later, stating, "VP signed off on this."

So, clearly, President Biden was not as oblivious to his son's business endeavors as he wanted everyone to believe.

This is why the impeachment inquiry was inevitable.

It may be that President Biden committed no criminal offense. But his complicity in Hunter's profiteering off the family name hints at corruption. As does the conduct of his Department of Justice, that appears to be shielding both Biden’s from any accountability.

The White House certainly anticipates trouble. Though they maintain that there is no evidence of Mr. Biden's personal profit from his son's ventures, the administration has been hiring numerous lawyers to fend off as many investigations as possible. It's hard to argue that there's no evidence when every effort to unearth it is met with opposition.

Many Republicans, myself included, recognize the gravity of impeachment proceedings. Impeachments should be reserved for exceptional circumstances for the sake of national unity. President Biden was elected by a convincing margin, and it is not Congress' decision to remove him because they may disagree on how he is running the country.

And Speaker McCarthy does himself no favors by refusing to have a vote to authorize the inquiry. In regard to the Trump impeachments, he said the House must "intend to hold a vote of the full House authorizing an impeachment inquiry," lest it "create a process completely devoid of any merit or legitimacy." He vowed to have a vote to authorize an inquiry earlier this month. No such undertaking has occurred. A unilateral impeachment inquiry may backfire on Republican plans to defend their small majority in 2024.

What Mr. McCarthy should do is use the newly enhanced subpoena power to procure all necessary documents and witness testimony. Congress should continue the inquiry and impeach the president only if the evidence warrants it. He should be held accountable so that public faith in the federal government will be restored. The impeachment inquiry will allow Congress to get to the bottom of whether the FBI, DOJ, and IRS have been interfering in these investigations and providing a cover.

And if the president is innocent? Nothing will happen. He will be exonerated, and the stench of malpractice will no longer serve as a detraction. In fact, he will find reelection easier if he has done nothing wrong. The inquiry remains the only way we can get to the bottom of all of this.