The Republican-led House committees investigating President Joe Biden released an extensive report on Monday, detailing allegations that the President has committed impeachable offenses. The nearly 300-page document is the culmination of a year-and-a-half-long investigation spearheaded by the House Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means committees. While the report stops short of recommending immediate impeachment, it lays the groundwork for the full House to decide on the next steps.
The report argues that President Biden engaged in conduct that amounts to an abuse of his office, enriching himself through his family's business ventures and allegedly concealing his mishandling of classified information. The latter point refers to the ongoing investigation by Special Counsel Robert Hur, which did not result in charges against Biden but remains a focal point of Republican scrutiny.
"The totality of the corrupt conduct uncovered by the Committees is egregious," the report states. "President Joe Biden conspired to commit influence peddling and grift. In doing so, he abused his office and, by repeatedly lying about his abuse of office, has defrauded the United States to enrich his family."
One of the most detailed sections of the report centers on the financial interactions between Hunter Biden, the President's son, and various foreign entities, including companies in Russia and China. According to the committees, these dealings netted the Biden family and their associates over $27 million. Despite this, the investigators have yet to find direct evidence that President Biden personally received money from these transactions.
The report highlights a 2014 dinner at Café Milano in Washington, D.C., attended by Joe Biden, then the Vice President, and Russian businesswoman Yelena Baturina. Baturina later invested $3.5 million in a company connected to Hunter Biden. The report alleges that Biden's presence at the dinner was part of a broader pattern of leveraging his official position to benefit his family financially.
The report also delves into various instances where Hunter Biden allegedly invoked his father's name to secure business deals. In one instance, Hunter Biden called his father during a business meeting with a Chinese energy company executive, putting him on speakerphone to exchange pleasantries. The report suggests that such actions were part of a broader effort to use the Biden name to secure favorable business outcomes, though it stops short of directly implicating Joe Biden in these dealings.
The report also addresses the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) investigation into Hunter Biden's failure to pay taxes in 2017 and 2018. Two IRS employees have come forward as whistleblowers, alleging that the Justice Department intentionally delayed the investigation. Hunter Biden was later convicted on federal gun charges, with a separate trial on tax charges scheduled for later this year.
Another significant allegation in the report is that President Biden improperly retained classified documents from his time as Vice President, a matter that Special Counsel Robert Hur investigated but did not result in charges. The report criticizes Biden's actions, suggesting that his behavior was part of a broader pattern of misconduct.
While the report does not explicitly call for impeachment, it strongly suggests that the evidence gathered could justify such a move. "The evidence uncovered in the impeachment inquiry to date already amounts to impeachable conduct," the report concludes. It also notes that "not one of these transactions would have occurred, but for Joe Biden's official position in the United States government."
The release of this report comes at a critical time for the Biden administration. The impeachment inquiry was formally ratified by the House in December 2023, following an announcement by then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in September. With the House of Representatives now in possession of the report, the decision on whether to proceed with impeachment lies in the hands of the full House.
However, even if the House were to vote for impeachment, the process faces significant hurdles in the Senate, where a two-thirds majority is required for conviction. Senate Democrats, who hold a slim majority, are likely to oppose any move to remove Biden from office.
