Hunter Biden has revealed new conditions under which he would take part in a deposition behind closed doors after weeks of defying Congressional subpoenas compelling him to appear.
The First Son’s change of mind comes days after he spontaneously showed up at a House Oversight and Accountability hearing as committee members contemplated holding him in contempt. The House is currently investigating Biden’s business dealings and accusations that he and his father – President Joe Biden – used their family's political influence to secure lucrative international business deals.
Abbe Lowell, Biden’s attorney, sent a letter to Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan saying his client would appear if the committees issued a new, “proper” subpoena.
“You have not explained why you are not interested in transparency and having the American people witness the full and complete testimony of Mr. Biden at a public hearing,” said Lowell, per The Hill. “If you issue a new proper subpoena, now that there is a duly authorized impeachment inquiry, Mr. Biden will comply for a hearing or deposition. We will accept such a subpoena on Mr. Biden’s behalf.”
Lowell contends that the two subpoenas previously issued were “legally invalid” as the House voted to authorize an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden in December. He said the subpoenas “cannot form a legal basis to proceed with your misdirected and impermissible contempt resolution” and that Comer and Jordan, “of all people, should know that is the case,” per NBC News.
The House will vote next week on the resolution to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress. Comer warned Lowell that the president’s son will not receive “special treatment.”
“On December 13, Hunter Biden failed to comply with the deposition subpoenas relevant to the House of Representatives’ impeachment inquiry and the Committees’ oversight investigations,” he said in a statement on Jan. 10. “Instead, Hunter Biden appeared on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol where he read a short, prepared statement without taking any questions from the media.”
He continued:Our investigation has produced significant evidence suggesting President Biden knew of, participated in, and benefitted from his family cashing in on the Biden name. Based on witness testimony, Joe Biden was the brand his family sold around the world to enrich the Biden family.
The Bidens and their associates raked in over $24 million from 2014 to 2019 from countries like China, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, and Kazakhstan. Witness testimony confirms then-Vice President Biden met, spoke by phone, dined, and had coffee with his family’s foreign business associates.
President Biden has repeatedly lied to the American people about speaking with his son’s associates. … We planned to question Hunter Biden about this record of evidence during our deposition, but he blatantly defied two lawful subpoenas. Hunter Biden’s willful refusal to comply with the Committees’ subpoenas is a criminal act.
The House Oversight Committee and Judiciary Committee have not yet publicly said if they will issue a new subpoena for Biden.
