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Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has launched an impeachment inquiry into U.S. President Joe Biden, exacerbating political turmoil ahead of next year’s U.S. election.
McCarthy’s announcement on Tuesday comes amid growing pressure from Donald Trump’s allies in the party to target Biden more aggressively, although some Republicans say the move could antagonize moderates and swings Undecided voters are counterproductive.
Speaking to reporters, McCarthy said the president “lied to the American people about what he knew about his family’s business dealings.”
“These are allegations of abuse of power, obstruction of justice and corruption,” McCarthy said.
He added that the investigation will be led by House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, both of whom have been leading investigations into the business dealings of Hunter Biden, the president’s son.
Impeachment proceedings in the House and a possible trial in the Senate are likely to dominate the political agenda and occupy the White House for weeks, drawing attention to Trump’s criminal indictment as he runs for president again in 2024.
The White House has repeatedly denied any accusations of wrongdoing. Many Democrats see the move as thinly veiled retaliation for Trump’s two impeachments and the multiple criminal prosecutions he faces for his conduct as president.
“House Republicans have been investigating the president for nine months and they have found no evidence of wrongdoing,” a White House spokesman said, adding: “This is extreme politics at its worst.”
Republicans hold a slim majority in the House of Representatives, which is likely to impeach the president, which would be the third such censure of the president in less than five years and a sign of growing polarization in American politics. Presidents have been impeached only four times since the founding of the republic, and none have been convicted.
After being impeached by the House of Representatives in 2021 and 2019, Trump was acquitted by the Senate. Before him, Bill Clinton was impeached in 1998, a sign of rising tensions between Republicans and Democrats. The only previous president to be so sanctioned was Andrew Johnson in the 1860s.
The key element Republicans will now try to prove is that Biden was directly involved in securing business deals for his son over the years, although they have so far failed to provide evidence of such action.
Hunter Biden’s plea deal on alleged tax and gun charges collapsed in July, paving the way for possible prosecution.
Republicans have also long scrutinized the president’s son’s ties to Ukrainian energy company Burisma and his alleged use of the family name to advance business interests. Burisma is a Ukrainian energy company where he served as a board member.
Trump has been urging McCarthy to launch impeachment proceedings against Biden as he seeks to paint the president as “dishonest,” as he did against Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign.
But some Republicans are uneasy about the Biden impeachment inquiry.
“We can waste time on issues that don’t matter, or we can focus on issues that matter,” Colorado Republican Ken Buck told MSNBC on Sunday. Buck noted that any impeachment of Biden would How difficult it would be to secure conviction in the Democratic-controlled Senate, which requires a supermajority.
The launch of the impeachment inquiry comes just weeks before a Sept. 30 deadline for Congress to approve government funding, otherwise many federal agencies and offices will face closure. Some Republicans have threatened to vote against funding the government unless McCarthy continues the impeachment inquiry.
McCarthy eventually won the support of the right wing of the party with a series of concessions, and it was not until the 15th round of voting this year that he won the speakership election.
That includes backing a rule that would allow any MP to trigger a vote of no confidence in him or any future speaker.
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