The long-awaited move by Representative James Comer, the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, to subpoena the president\u2019s son Hunter and his brother James comes as Republicans look to gain ground in their nearly yearlong investigation. So far, they have failed to uncover evidence directly implicating the president in any wrongdoing.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
US President Joe Biden\u2019s son Hunter Biden carries the hopes of the Republican.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n But Republicans say the evidence trail they have uncovered paints a troubling picture of \u201cinfluence peddling\u201d by Biden\u2019s family in their business dealings, particularly with clients overseas.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, the House Oversight Committee is going to bring in members of the Biden family and their associates to question them on this record of evidence,\u201d Comer, of Kentucky, said in a statement.<\/p>\n The stakes are exceedingly high, as the inquiry could result in Republicans bringing impeachment charges against Biden, the ultimate penalty for what the US Constitution describes as \u201chigh crimes and misdemeanours\u201d.<\/p>\n The subpoenas demand that Hunter Biden and James Biden as well as former business associate Rob Walker appear before the Oversight Committee for a deposition.<\/p>\n Lawmakers also requested that James Biden\u2019s wife, Sara Biden, and Hallie Biden, the wife of the president\u2019s deceased son Beau, appear voluntarily for transcribed interviews.<\/p>\n Requests for comment from Hunter Biden, who lives in California, and James Biden, who\u2019s from Royal Oak, Maryland, were not immediately returned.<\/p>\n Both the White House and the Biden family\u2019s personal lawyers have dismissed the investigation as a political ploy aimed at hurting the Democratic president. They say the probe is a blatant attempt to help former President Donald Trump, the early front-runner for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, as he runs again for the White House.<\/p>\n Hunter Biden\u2019s attorney Abbe Lowell said the investigation has been full of \u201cworn-out, false, baseless, or debunked claims.\u201d<\/p>\n In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday morning, Lowell urged the new speaker to rein in the \u201cpartisan political games.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnson, now settling into the speakership after replacing Kevin McCarthy as the top Republican in the House, has given his blessing to the inquiry and has hinted that a decision could come soon on whether to pursue articles of impeachment against Biden.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we have a constitutional responsibility to follow this truth where it leads,\u201d Johnson told Fox News Channel recently. He also said in a separate Fox interview that he would support Comer\u2019s decision to subpoena the president\u2019s son, saying \u201cdesperate times call for desperate measures, and that perhaps is overdue\u201d.<\/p>\n Since January, Republicans have been investigating the Biden family for what they claim is a pattern of \u201cinfluence peddling\u201d spanning back to when Biden was Barack Obama\u2019s vice president.<\/p>\n Comer claims the committee had \u201cuncovered a mountain of evidence\u201d that he said would show how Biden abused his power and repeatedly lied about a \u201cwall\u201d between his political position and his son\u2019s private business dealings.<\/p>\n While questions have arisen about the ethics surrounding the Biden family\u2019s international business, no evidence has emerged to prove that Joe Biden, in his current or previous office, abused his role or accepted bribes.<\/p>\n