(Casey Harper, The Center Square) – President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, has reportedly requested to testify publicly before Congress.
Hunter Biden’s lawyer sent a letter to the House Oversight Committee, chaired by Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., accusing the committee of distorting testimony conducted behind closed doors and asking that his testimony before Congress be public. The exchange came after Comer subpoenaed Hunter Biden as part of the ongoing investigation into his overseas business deals and evidence that funds from those deals went to the president.
After the letter from Hunter Biden’s lawyer sparked headlines Tuesday morning, Comer released a statement.
“Hunter Biden is trying to play by his own rules instead of following the rules required of everyone else,” Comer said. “That won’t stand with House Republicans. Our lawfully issued subpoena to Hunter Biden requires him to appear for a deposition on December 13. We expect full cooperation with our subpoena for a deposition but also agree that Hunter Biden should have the opportunity to testify in a public setting at a future date.”
House Judiciary Chair Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, welcomed the testimony Tuesday, echoed the idea of both a private deposition and a public hearing.
“We are glad that Hunter Biden has decided to cooperate and we look forward to hearing from him in a deposition on December 13 and subsequently at a public hearing,” Jordan wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The news comes after Comer sent a subpoena to an array of Biden family members and associates, including Hunter Biden.
Those subpoenas are the latest step in the impeachment inquiry into the president as mounting evidence has been released by the Oversight Committee to back up allegations that the Biden family and associates received more than $20 million from several overseas entities and that some of those funds may have gone to the president himself.
The evidence includes testimony from IRS whistleblowers, bank records and copies of checks made out out to the president totaling $240,000.
“The House Oversight Committee is leaving no stone unturned as we investigate President Joe Biden’s central role in his family’s domestic and international business dealings,” Comer said in a statement earlier this month. “Yesterday, the House Oversight Committee delivered subpoenas to the President’s son, Hunter Biden, brother, James Biden, and other Biden family associates connected to the record of evidence obtained by this Committee.
“A plethora of bank records, texts, emails, and a transcribed interview with Biden family associate Devon Archer all show the Bidens and their business partners sold access to the highest levels of our government, including Joe Biden himself, to the detriment of America’s interests,” he added.
