House Oversight Chairman James Comer has officially invited President Joe Biden to testify at a public hearing in an attempt to revive interest in the stalled impeachment inquiry into the president. The invitation was met with criticism from the White House, with a spokesperson calling it a “sad stunt.” Comer suggested a hearing date of April 16 but was willing to negotiate with the White House on a date that worked for the president.
House Republicans have struggled to find evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden, leading to doubts within GOP ranks about the prospects of impeachment given the conference’s divided, narrow majority. With the appetite for impeachment waning, Republicans are considering sending criminal referrals to the Department of Justice instead. After over 14 months of investigation, Republicans have failed to uncover evidence to support their core allegations against the president.
In his letter to Biden, Comer outlined the four phases of his investigation that led him to seeking the president’s testimony. He asked Biden to respond to a series of questions, including whether he had interactions with his son’s foreign business associates regarding the money he lent his brother. Various Biden family business associates have testified they had surface level interactions with Biden but did not discuss business with him. Biden has refuted claims from House Republicans that he was involved in business dealings with his family.
As Republicans search for an exit strategy from the investigation in an election year, Comer has lowered expectations for what a successful end to the inquiry looks like. He emphasized that his goal was never to impeach Biden and pointed to the Democratic-controlled Senate as a dead end for any impeachment efforts. In a fundraising email, Comer highlighted criminal referrals as a better alternative to impeachment, citing the unlikely success of impeachment articles against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
House Speaker Mike Johnson announced that the House will send the Mayorkas impeachment articles to the Senate on April 10. The focus on possible criminal referrals rather than impeachment signals a shift in Republican strategy as they navigate the challenges of investigating President Biden without concrete evidence of wrongdoing. The ongoing nature of the impeachment inquiry and the lack of substantial findings have led to discussions within GOP ranks about the most effective way to address calls from the right-wing base to hold Biden accountable.
