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McCarthy sidelines Lauren Boebert’s push for quick vote on Biden impeachment

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The House voted Thursday to send an impeachment resolution against President Biden back to two House committees, a move that allowed GOP leaders to sidestep a push from Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., to hold an immediate vote on impeachment.

Lawmakers voted 219-208 in favor of shipping the issue back to committee – every "yes" vote came from Republicans.

Boebert filed a privileged resolution on the House floor Tuesday evening aimed at impeaching Biden over the border crisis, and it appeared to catch members of her own party off guard. A privileged resolution allows lawmakers to force a vote on the House floor without going through the committee, a move that key Republicans opposed because it skirts the regular process.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy called the move "flippant" in comments to reporters on Wednesday. Oversight Committee Chair James Comer told Fox News Digital, "I wish she’d gone about it a different way."

EXCLUSIVE: BOEBERT INTRODUCES NEW IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN OVER BORDER CRISIS

But Boebert and McCarthy managed to strike a deal and the House Rules Committee, which sets procedural guardrails for every bill, drafted a rule to put the question of impeachment into the hands of the House Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees.

The last-minute workaround reflects the continued tensions between House GOP leadership and a small group of hardliners who have managed to use McCarthy’s slim majority to advance their agenda and throw regular floor proceedings into chaos when their demands are not met.

The speaker can only afford to lose four Republicans to pass legislation assuming all Democrats oppose it.

Boebert called the resulting compromise with McCarthy to advance impeachment procedurally "historic" during remarks on the House floor before the vote.

GOP REP. OGLES INTRODUCES IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN, HARRIS

"For the first time in 24 years, a House Republican-led majority is moving forward with impeachment proceedings against a current president. This bill allows impeachment proceedings to proceed through the traditional institutional channels by building a body of evidence at the committee level, through the Committees on Homeland Security and the Judiciary," she said.

"Biden's lawless disregard for our federal laws has incentivized more than 5.5 illegal aliens to attempt to cross the border, overwhelming Border Patrol and allowing an invasion to take place that is causing real harm to the American people," Boebert added. "The Biden border crisis and massive wave of illegal immigration has fueled a record breaking fentanyl crisis since President Biden has taken office."

IT'S TIME TO BRING IMPEACHMENT CHARGES AGAINST JOE BIDEN

Democrats accused Republicans of weaponizing the impeachment process against the president. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa., said the move "should disturb every patriotic American."

"I cannot overstate the solemness and sadness that I feel right now, to see the House so debased by the invocation of our most grave constitutional duty, impeachment of a president," she said. "Common sense is revolted by the political grandstanding and petty stunts allowed by the House majority. Days on end, wasted catering to the whims of an extremist minority."

Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., the top Democrat on the Rules Committee, said on the House floor, "They have a policy disagreement with President Biden. And their first impulse isn't, ‘Let's pass an immigration bill.’ Their first impulse is to impeach him. Our founding fathers must be rolling over in their graves."

Texas Republican pushes Biden impeachment over ‘false’ compassion for migrants, ‘reach’ of cartels into US

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Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, scorched President Biden in a House floor speech Thursday demanding his impeachment, accusing the administration and Democrats of expressing "false" compassion toward migrants while allowing the "dangerous hand of cartels" to stretch into the United States. 

On Wednesday night, the House Rules Committee reported a rule to refer House Resolution 503 to the Committee on Homeland and Security and Judiciary laying out articles of impeachment against President Biden "for his failure to secure the southern border of the United States." 

"The laws of the United States are there expressly and specifically laid out to ensure that our border will be protected, that our nation will be secure," Roy told the House floor Thursday. "That is the fundamental question before us is when the Executive Branch fails to follow the law, when the Executive Branch fails to adhere to its duty to defend the Constitution, the laws of the United States, then what is it that the Congress – that the People's House – is supposed to do in response?"

"The founders gave us a mechanism, and here today we are talking about putting forward and referring these articles to the Homeland Security Committee for determination of the extent to which the homeland is, in fact, not secure as a direct consequence of the refusal of the administration, well beyond maladministration, but very specifically the refusal to follow the laws of the United States that is resulting in the direct consequence of the death and damage to the American people.," he continued.

DESANTIS ANNOUNCES NATIONWIDE COALITION OF 90 SHERIFFS TO PUSH BACK AGAINST BORDER CRISIS

Roy said since Biden took office, there have been more than 5 million illegal migrant encounters along the southwest border – including more than 240,000 illegal immigrants encountered at the border in May alone. Since the "relaxed enforcement" of Title 42, he argued about 2 million illegal immigrants have successfully evaded border agents, based on "relatively conservative accounting," Roy said. He said data shows 125 individuals from the terrorist watch list have been encountered this fiscal year, compared to about 98 in all the last fiscal year and about 10 in the last year of the Trump administration. 

In his floor speech, Roy referenced a recent opinion from U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Texas Reed O’Connor laying out how illegal immigrants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport and harbor illegal migrants. The sentencing information shows that on behalf of the Juarez cartel, the defendants participated in a migrant smuggling conspiracy. 

The smuggling organization charged $10,000 to smuggle an adult illegal immigrant to the U.S. and between $12,000 to $14000 to smuggle a child.

The order lays out how authorities discovered that there was an illegal immigrant in Baltimore who was being held for ransom so that his family would not be abused by the Juarez cartel. The cartel member allegedly told the husband, "They would do things to his daughter he would not like," if he did not make a payment of $23,000, Roy said. 

"This is the state of affairs in our country. And this is the consequence to those migrants who were seeking to come here when my colleagues in the false name of compassion state that open borders is somehow good for them," Roy said. "But this is causing crime to extend into our communities. This is causing us to experience the dangerous hand of cartels. Just this morning, we had more news about cartels and their reach into Texas, into the United States. It is an everyday occurrence. Bailouts, damage to ranches, harm to Texans, death to Texans, fentanyl. How many more fentanyl moms? How many more angel moms? How many more Americans need suffer because this president refuses to follow the laws of the United States that he raised his hand and swore an oath to defend?" 

NEARLY 17 MILLION ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS LIVING IN THE US, 16% INCREASE SINCE 2021: ANALYSIS

In a fiery response, Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., slammed the House Rules Committee for convening Wednesday night to deploy emergency procedures to refer the Biden impeachment resolution to committee. 

"What a spectacular emergency. Truly something that needed to be done immediately," McGovern scoffed. "We all know the truth. The real emergency here was that the Georgia wing and the Colorado wing of the MAGA caucus got into a fight right over -- right over there on the House floor about who gets to impeach the president first. The truth is that Speaker McCarthy has lost control of this House, and it is being run by the MAGA fringe. This is nuts." 

Since the end of Title 42 on May 11, the Democrat argued that unlawful entries along the southern border have plummeted. As of June 6, Customs and Border Protection reported over 70% fewer encounters between points of entry or unscheduled encounters per day, McGovern said, adding that "fentanyl seizures have increased under the Biden presidency." 

"They would rather talk about building a stupid wall along our southern border that they know won't work," McGovern said of Republicans. "Or about a non-binding resolution they put on the floor this week that demonizes migrants but does nothing to fix our immigration system. I mean, they have a policy disagreement with President Biden and their first impulse isn't let's pass an immigration bill. Their first impulse is to impeach him. Our founding fathers must be rolling over in their graves." 

Before yielding his time, Roy responded to McGovern’s remarks. 

"I would just note that this morning, Texas DPS troopers arrested a Gulf cartel operative in the Rio Grande Valley moving smugglers across the river, having paid thousands of dollars, moving five illegal immigrants into the United States," Roy countered. "This is somebody that had been affiliated with a dangerous cartel. It's happening every day of the state of Texas because this administration refuses to do its job." 

Adam Schiff censured by House for ‘false’ allegations on Trump-Russia collusion

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The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., for pushing claims that former President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign colluded with Russia — a vote that made Schiff just the third member of the House to be censured since the turn of the century.

The resolution passed 213-209 in a vote — every Republican voted for it except for six who voted "present," and every Democrat voted against it.

Immediately following the vote, Democrats gathered on the floor and chanted "Shame!" and "Disgrace!" as House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., tried to gavel the House in order for several minutes. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was heard calling McCarthy a "spiteful coward" and accusing him of "weak leadership."

McCarthy then asked Schiff to present himself in the well of the House, and Democrats clapped and cheered as he approached. After being interrupted several times by Democrats, McCarthy said, "I have all night."

Schiff then stood in well of the House as required by the resolution, and was hugged and cheered by dozens of Democrats who surrounded him. The measure also requires the House Committee on Ethics to investigate Schiff’s "falsehoods, misrepresentations, and abuses of sensitive information."

ADAM SCHIFF DODGES BULLET: HOUSE VOTES AGAINST BILL CENSURING HIM FOR TRUMP-RUSSIA ‘LIES’

It was the second time the House tried to pass a resolution censuring Schiff from Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla. A resolution from Luna failed on the House floor last week because it recommended a fine against Schiff of $16 million, which Democrats and 20 Republicans opposed.

With that language removed, the resolution was able to pass on a party-line vote, which Luna said was needed to fight back against Schiff's "lies" about Trump.

"As chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Adam Schiff launched an all-out political campaign built on baseless distortions against a sitting U.S. president, at the expense of every single citizen in this country and the honor of the House of Representatives," Luna said before the vote. "With access to sensitive information unavailable to most members of Congress and certainly not accessible to the American people, Schiff abused his privileges, claiming to know the truth while leaving Americans in the dark about his web of lies… lies so severe that they altered the course of the country forever."

Schiff spoke in his own defense on the House floor, and thanked Republicans for bringing the resolution forward again.

"To my Republican colleagues who introduced this resolution, I thank you. You honor me with your enmity, you flatter me with this falsehood," Schiff said.

"You, who are the authors of a big lie about the last election, must condemn the truth tellers," he said. "And I stand proudly before you. Your words tell me that I have been effective in the defense of our democracy, and I am grateful."

THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO CENSURING SCHIFF THIS WEEK

Schiff was a leader of Trump’s first impeachment proceeding, which was launched over a phone call made to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in which he tried to leverage U.S. military aid in a bid to get him to announce an investigation of now-President Biden.

Democrats tried to table the resolution to censure Schiff on Wednesday but failed in a 218-208 vote along party lines.

THESE 20 REPUBLICANS SAVED ADAM SCHIFF FROM CENSURE OVER TRUMP-RUSSIA ‘LIES’

Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not mince words when she accused Republicans of doing Trump’s bidding and told them they looked "miserable" in the process.

"The other side has turned this chamber where slavery was abolished, where Medicare and Social Security and everything were instituted, they’ve turned it into a puppet show," Pelosi said. "And you know what? The puppeteer, Donald Trump, is shining a light on the strings. You look miserable. You look miserable… you're wasting time."

The vote is not the first time House Republicans have used their majority in this Congress to target Schiff. McCarthy pulled Schiff off the Intelligence Committee this year for promoting claims that the 2016 Trump campaign was working with Russia, an allegation that was never proven.

Boebert forcing vote on Biden impeachment hits a nerve with her own party: ‘Playground games’

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Several House Republicans said Wednesday they were frustrated with Rep. Lauren Boebert's attempt to bypass the committee process to push for an immediate vote to impeach President Biden.

Boebert, R-Colo., filed a privileged resolution on the House floor Tuesday evening aimed at impeaching Biden over the border crisis, and it appeared to catch members of her own party off guard. A privileged resolution allows lawmakers to force a vote on the House floor without going through the committee, a move that some Republicans seem to oppose.

House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., would not say if he would support Boebert's resolution but suggested he was unhappy about how her resolution skirted his committee despite its months-long investigation into corruption accusations against the Biden family.

"I don't like how she presented it by bypassing the committee process, especially when the investigation in the oversight committee, which she's on, is producing new information almost daily," Comer told Fox News Digital."

EXCLUSIVE: BOEBERT INTRODUCES NEW IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN OVER BORDER CRISIS

"I feel like we've got some more work to do on the Oversight Committee before we issue a report, then once we issue a report, depending on what's in that report, then the Judiciary Committee would be the committee that would then have hearings on any potential wrongdoing and potential impeachment," he said. "So I wish she had gone about it a different way."

"I think the previous majority cheapened impeachment," Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., told Fox News Digital. "I think it was politicized. This shouldn't be playground games."

"This should be serious, should go through the Judiciary Committee or Oversight committee. And if there [are] real facts for impeachment, then you go there, but doing this is wrong," he said, agreeing with Comer.

"I would prefer regular order, I think regular order has worked for us," said Rep. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D. "I think we fought really hard to get rank-and-file members to have committee access and all of those things. That was a big part of the 15-vote speaker fight, so I think we should use it."

IT'S TIME TO BRING IMPEACHMENT CHARGES AGAINST JOE BIDEN

Bacon said he would vote with Democrats to kill the resolution when it comes up, something that could happen today; so did Rep. Ryan Zinke. R-Mont., who previously served as President Trump's Interior Secretary and recalled the impeachment process Democrats underwent during that administration.

GOP REP. OGLES INTRODUCES IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN, HARRIS

"I loathe how they treated President Trump. If you want to go through impeachment, it should go through Judiciary, they should look at all the evidence and have a case that is clear," Zinke said. "I think it should be pursued. I think it should be done, absolutely, so the American people can see it all transparent. I think Jim Jordan, and that committee of jurisdiction is the right place."

"But doing a privilege motion off the floor is, to me, theater, and smacks of self-service and not service," he added.

Boebert was not at Wednesday morning's regular party-wide meeting, Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., told reporters. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer was noncommittal when asked about her move, stating, "People have a right to do what they want to do."

With the thinly-divided House chamber, Democrats just need a handful of Republicans to vote with them to table Boebert's motion.

Adam Schiff vows to wear House GOP censure like ‘badge of honor’

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Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., vowed to wear a censure vote by House Republicans as a "badge of honor" Wednesday in an exclusive interview with Fox News.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is poised to begin the process of censuring Shiff on Wednesday, with the final vote taking place Friday. Censure is the second most serious form of discipline a representative can face in Congress, following only expulsion.

When asked by Fox News for his thoughts on the censure, Schiff expressed pride, claiming that it validates the actions he took.

"I take it as a badge of honor because this says that I'm effective," Schiff said." They go after people that they think are effective, I exposed the corruption of former President. I led the first impeachment trial of the former president to the first bipartisan vote to remove a president and U.S. history."

HUNTER BIDEN AGREES TO PLEAD GUILTY TO FEDERAL TAX CHARGES

"I'm proud of that work and I would do it again, if the circumstances required," he added.

THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO CENSURING SCHIFF THIS WEEK

Schiff went on to argue that former President Trump's attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election validated his actions in the investigation.

"I warned the first trial, that if it didn't hold Donald Trump accountable, that he would go on to try to do worse in the next election, and he did, leading to a violent insurrection against the U.S. Capitol," he said.

"To be admonished by Kevin McCarthy and like--it is an honor. These are the authors of the Big Lie, who attacked me for telling the truth, and I'm proud to stand up to them," he concluded.

Wednesday's process marks the second attempt by Republicans to formally censure Schiff. A previous attempt failed earlier this month because it included a $16 million fine against the lawmaker. Twenty Republicans joined Democrats in voting to table that measure.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., has now revamped her notice to censure to remove the fine, and will speak about the move on the House floor on Wednesday.

Rep. Boebert says she will use a privileged motion to bring impeachment articles against Biden

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Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., revealed on Twitter she will bring articles of impeachment against President Biden using a privileged motion.

"BREAKING: I am bringing my articles of impeachment against Joe Biden to the House Floor in a privileged motion, meaning that every Member of Congress must vote on holding Joe Biden accountable," Boebert tweeted Tuesday evening.

The Republican lawmaker has contended Biden remains negligent on the U.S. border, failing to keep Americans safe from an influx of deadly fentanyl and criminal activity as well as failing to relieve the strain on the country’s immigration system.

"Biden intentionally ceded command & control of our border to cartels. His dereliction of duty caused the deaths of over 900 Coloradans from fentanyl, enabled sex-trafficking, & allowed an invasion," she wrote in a subsequent tweet. "I brought my articles of impeachment up via a privileged motion to force a vote."

EXCLUSIVE: BOEBERT INTRODUCES NEW IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN OVER BORDER CRISIS

The motion will require all House members to go on the record regarding the impeachment articles, according to the congresswoman.

Last week, during an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Boebert accused Biden of mishandling his "constitutional duty to secure our southern border" and said she would introduce the impeachment articles if her party leaders failed to do so.

"Given the severity of the violation of Joe Biden's constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of the president, United States to the best of his ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, this is something that we must do with our majorities in the House of Representatives," Boebert told Fox News Digital Tuesday. "This is our duty because Joe Biden has neglected the constitutional duty of the office of President of the United States."

IT'S TIME TO BRING IMPEACHMENT CHARGES AGAINST JOE BIDEN

"I introduced the articles of impeachment in the last Congress and had fully intended to introduce them this Congress, but I was also giving some other committees and leadership the opportunity to lead on this," Boebert continued.

She added: "It's about Joe Biden's failure to secure the southern border."

"And I did this so at any time, if the committees and or leadership does not step up and actually do something about the president's failure to secure our southern border and keep the country safe, then I will call my legislation my articles of impeachment for a privileged motion," Boebert explained.

GOP REP. OGLES INTRODUCES IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN, HARRIS

Her motion may not result in an immediate vote, however, as leadership has two days in accordance with House rules to decide how to proceed.

"Under Rule IX in the House, we can bring up certain pieces of legislation under a privileged motion. So I would go to the House floor and call up my articles of impeachment and read it in its entirety. And at that point, leadership has a maximum of two days to respond and see if it's going to be sent to committee or a vote on the articles themselves," Boebert told Fox.

Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., has also introduced articles of impeachment against President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris during this session of Congress. They were introduced on June 12, and Boebert is a cosponsor.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., also introduced articles of impeachment against Biden and other Biden officials including Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas, Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and U.S. attorney Matthew Graves. She may also use a privileged motion to force a vote. Boebert is not a cosponsor. 

Boebert, who has remained a vocal critic of the Biden administration since she was first elected in 2020, won her first re-election contest by a mere 546 votes. The closeness prompted a recount, which confirmed the result.

Immigration levels over the southern border with Mexico have witnessed historic highs under Biden.

Fox News' Houston Keene and Aubrie Spady contributed to this report.

Fox News Politics: Deal Hunter

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HUNTER FALLS PREY: President Biden's son Hunter Biden agreed to plead guilty to tax misdemeanors and a felony related to illegally purchasing a gun as a drug addict… Read more: Hunter Biden agrees to plead guilty in federal tax, gun case

DEAL HUNTER: Hunter's plea agreement caught Trump's ridicule as Republicans claim it smacks of corruption… Read more: Trump says Hunter Biden got off with a ‘traffic ticket,’ slams ‘corrupt’ justice system

SON BURN: Biden previously said his son Hunter did nothing wrong… Read more: Hunter's plea deal flips Biden's past comments about investigation on their head: 'Great confidence'

HUNTED BIDENS: Trump's former attorney general calls for more transparency on alleged Biden bribes… Read more: Bill Barr: DOJ should release FBI doc alleging Biden bribery scheme to Congress

PARTY DOWN: Hunter Biden's dealings with Ukrainian energy executives included Joe's birthday party… Read more: Hunter Biden, Burisma-linked associates attended dad's holiday bash days after infamous 2015 Ukraine trip

CONFUSION: Biden touts strange accomplishment… Read more: Biden oddly claims his administration 'will have conserved 30%' of all US lands and waters by '2020'

WIPEOUT: Judge sides with Maine lobster fisherman against Biden admin's regulations… Read more: Maine lobstermen catch big court victory against Biden administration's 'egregious' regulations

‘HELL TO PAY’: Trump claims he personally stopped Russia invading Ukraine while he was in office… Read more: Trump claims conversation with Putin delayed Russian invasion of Ukraine: ‘Don’t do it'

ONE CHINA: Secretary of State Blinken recommits to key Chinese stance in visit to communist country… Read more: Blinken says US 'does not support Taiwan independence' during China visit

'FLIPPING THE BIRD': WH officials who flagrantly violate ethics rules 'should be fired,' Dem expert says… Read more: Dem expert puts KJP, Bates on notice, says officials who keep breaking Hatch Act 'should be gone'

COURT PRESS: Republicans are working to restore congressional power over regulations… Read more: House strikes blow against federal regulations, votes to overturn controversial Supreme Court ruling

BIDEN-PEACMENT? Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert floats impeachment over border record… Read more: EXCLUSIVE: Boebert introduces new impeachment articles against Biden over border crisis

DREAM TEAM: Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman tripped though remarks at an event with Biden… Read more: Fetterman stumbles through remarks with Biden, PA officials while wearing hoodie and shorts

PROUD TO BE AMERICAN: Senate Republican aims to enforce flag rules to prevent LGBTQ pride flag from supplanting the stars and stripes… Read more: Feds banned from flying non-US flags under new GOP bill after White House flies Pride flag

STRONG SUPPORT: Trump maintains strong polling lead in 2024 GOP presidential race after federal indictment… Read more: IN OR OUT? New poll reveals where Republican voters stand in support of Trump after second indictment

CAMPAIGN TRIAL: A judge has set a date for Trump's trial on federal charges, though it could be pushed back… Read more: Judge in Trump classified documents case sets preliminary trial date

NO DILLY-DILLY: DeSantis pulled the taps at a campaign event but refused to pour one kind of beer… Read more: WATCH: Ron DeSantis gets bar crowd laughing with Bud Light quip: 'I'll serve you anything except...'

Hunter Biden agrees to plead guilty in federal tax, gun case

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Hunter Biden has agreed to plead guilty in the federal case stemming from years-long investigation into his tax affairs, Fox News has confirmed.

Fox News has confirmed that the president's son will plead guilty to two counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax. Hunter Biden also agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion agreement regarding a separate charge of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.

Biden has been under federal investigation since 2018. That investigation into his "tax affairs" began amid the discovery of suspicious activity reports (SARs) regarding funds from "China and other foreign nations." 

Fox News first reported in 2020 that the FBI had subpoenaed a laptop and hard drive purportedly belonging to Hunter Biden in connection with a money-laundering investigation in late 2019. 

2011 EMAILS REVEAL HUNTER BIDEN HELPED BUSINESS ASSOCIATES GET ACESS TO VP BIDEN , TOP AIDE

In December 2020, weeks after the 2020 presidential election, Biden publicly acknowledged he was under investigation related to his taxes. At the time, Biden said he took the matter "very seriously" and was "confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors." 

IT'S TIME TO END THE PROTECTION OF HUNTER BIDEN: JACK KALAVRITINOS

The firearms charge stemmed from allegations that Hunter Biden lied during a gun purchase in 2018. 

Fox News first reported in 2021 that police had responded to an incident in 2018, when a gun owned by Hunter Biden was thrown into a trash can outside a market in Delaware.

A source with knowledge of the Oct. 23, 2018, police report told Fox News that it indicated that Hallie Biden, the widow of President Biden's late son, Beau, and who was in a relationship with Hunter at the time, threw a gun owned by Hunter in a dumpster behind a market near a school.

A firearm transaction report reviewed by Fox News indicated that Hunter Biden purchased a gun earlier that month.

On the firearm transaction report, Hunter Biden answered in the negative when asked if he was "an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?"

Hunter Biden was discharged from the Navy in 2014 after testing positive for cocaine.

The White House reacted to the charges Tuesday morning. 

"The President and First Lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life," White House spokesperson Ian Sams said in a statement. "We will have no further comment."

Questions surrounding Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings entered the political conversation in 2019. Former President Donald Trump suggested Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy launch an investigation into the Biden family’s business dealings—specifically why then-Vice President Joe Biden pressed Zelensky's predecessor to fire a top prosecutor investigating Ukrainian natural gas firm Burisma Holdings, where Hunter Biden held a lucrative role on the board. 

That phone call prompted the first Trump impeachment. Republicans, in their defense of the former president, zeroed in on Hunter Biden and his overseas business dealings, even suggesting Biden testify as part of the impeachment proceedings. The House of Representatives voted to impeach Trump in December 2019, but he was acquitted by the Senate. 

Republicans in the Senate, like Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., also began investigating Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings in 2019. Grassley and Johnson released a report out of their joint investigation in September 2020. 

In that report, Grassley and Johnson said they obtained records from the U.S. Treasury Department that showed "potential criminal activity relating to transactions among and between Hunter Biden, his family, and his associates with Ukrainian, Russian, Kazakh and Chinese nationals." The report also stated that Senate investigators found millions of dollars in "questionable financial transactions" between Hunter Biden and his associates and foreign individuals, including the wife of the former mayor of Moscow as well as individuals with ties to the Chinese Communist Party.

ANDY MCCARTHY: WE'RE DEALING WITH ‘VERY SOPHISTICATED ACTORS’ IN HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP INTEL LETTER

In the fall of 2022, Grassley and Johnson flagged to the FBI that they were in possession of whistleblower allegations suggesting the bureau had "significant, impactful and voluminous evidence with respect to potential criminal conduct by Hunter Biden and James Biden" and related to Hunter's work with Burisma Holdings. 

And when Republicans took the House majority following the 2022 midterm elections, the House Oversight Committee, led by Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., ramped up its investigative work, focusing in on the Biden family and whether their foreign business transactions put U.S. national security at risk. 

The White House has maintained that the president never spoke to his son about his business dealings and that the president was never involved in them. Officials also say the president has never discussed investigations into members of his family with the Justice Department.

The charges against the first son come after an IRS criminal supervisory agent seeking whistleblower protections said the federal investigation into Hunter Biden was being mishandled by the Biden administration. 

The whistleblower claimed "clear" conflicts of interest, including giving the president’s son "preferential treatment." The whistleblower also claimed politics are "improperly infecting decisions and protocols that would normally be followed by career law enforcement professionals in similar circumstances if the subject were not politically connected."

The White House has fired back against those allegations, saying that Biden has upheld his commitment to ensure the investigation is "free from any political interference."

Meanwhile, a separate whistleblower has alleged that the FBI and the Justice Department are in possession of a document that describes a criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Joe Biden and a foreign national relating to the exchange of money for policy decisions. 

Comer and Grassley said the whistleblower claims the document "includes a precise description of how the alleged criminal scheme was employed as well as its purpose."

The document, which Comer subpoenaed, an FBI-generated FD-1023 form, allegedly details an arrangement involving an exchange of money for policy decisions. 

The White House on Wednesday slammed what it said were "unfounded, unproven, politically-motivated attacks against the president and his family" made "without offering evidence for their claims or evidence of decisions influenced by anything other than U.S. interests."

"When it comes to President Biden’s personal finances, anybody can take a look: he has offered an unprecedented level of transparency, releasing a total of 25 years of tax returns to the American public," White House spokesman Ian Sams told Fox News Digital. 

If At First You Don’t Succeed

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If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

And that’s exactly what freshman Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., intends to do in the coming days. Luna is intent on compelling the House of Representatives to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.

Most Republicans have nothing but enmity for Schiff following his role leading up to and through the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump.

"You had Adam Schiff, who was chairman of the Intel Committee, lying day after day to the American public that he had proof (of collusion) by former President Trump with Russia," said House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on Fox last month. "Now it’s time that people have consequences for their actions."

ADAM SCHIFF NOT OUT OF THE WOODSHED YET: HOP WILL MOVE AGAIN TO CONDEMN HIS ‘FALSE ACCUSATIONS’

In the spring, Luna prepped a resolution to expel Schiff. The House referred that measure to the Ethics Committee. It’s doubtful that plan was ever going anywhere. The House has only expelled five Members in history. And the Constitution dictates a two-thirds vote.

So, Luna settled on censure.

Censure is one of the three formal modes of discipline in the House – right between reprimand and expulsion. A reprimand is exactly what it sounds like. If the House votes to reprimand a Member, they stand in the well of the House chamber before the entire body and the Speaker admonishes the offender for their conduct. Censure looks exactly the same – only the Speaker castigates you with a little more soul.

Consider the dynamic: McCarthy and his personal level of antipathy toward Schiff, standing atop the dais, glaring down at Schiff in the well, awaiting a scolding from the Speaker.

ADAM SCHIFF LIED TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE: REP. ANNA PAULINA LUNA

Luna attempted to arrange that political stagecraft in the House chamber last week when she prepared what the House calls a "privileged" resolution to censure Schiff. The House must consider such specialized measures right away or within two days. If the House adopted Luna’s resolution, lawmakers would require Schiff to present himself to McCarthy for reproval and also face an additional inquiry by the Ethics Committee. However, approval of the resolution would also slap the California Democrat with a staggering $16 million fine. That’s what Luna’s office estimates to be half the cost of the Russia probe for former President Trump.

But that plan to fine Schiff killed the censure resolution in the House last Wednesday. The House never even got a straight, up or down vote on censure. The House voted to table – or lay aside – Luna’s plan, 225-196. Twenty Republicans joined all Democrats to euthanize that censure effort.

Fox spoke with several of those GOPers who voted to table the measure. One noted that Republicans are always touting getting the House back to "regular order." That GOPer observed that Luna’s resolution never went before a committee first. Second, the Republican pointed out that such "privileged" resolutions are typically the province of the minority. The House majority controls the floor. So that member questioned why Luna didn’t bring the resolution before the House Republican Conference and talk it through first. That said, any Member may craft a privileged resolution and bring it to the floor if they see fit.

Most of the Republicans who voted to table the original plan didn’t like the $16 million fine. Granted, there aren’t many House GOPers who get along with Adam Schiff. But they worried that approval of such a fine could open Pandora’s Box.

"You wait until Democrats are back in the majority," said one of the 20 GOPers who voted present. "If we pass that, they will stick it to us."

There is also the concern that levying such a stiff fine on a lawmaker could force them to leave Congress to find other work. One lawmaker worried that a fine of that magnitude – imposed by a simple majority – didn’t match the spirit of the Constitutional bar, requiring a two-thirds vote for expulsion. Therefore, this resolution effectively lowered the bar for expulsion.

Undaunted, Luna went back to work and tweaked her censure plan for Schiff.

"He knowingly used his position as chairman of House Intelligence to lie to the American people. To lie to his fellow colleagues," said Luna on Fox Business. "So he will be held accountable."

The updated censure plan basically has the same goal of the first: censure Schiff and refer him to the Ethics Committee for further adjudication. However, it drops the fine. That said, a couple of Republicans with whom Fox spoke wondered why the House would vote to censure Schiff – a serious sanction unto itself – and then send the California Democrat to the ethics panel for further investigation. One source familiar with the resolution said there were other alleged transgressions involving Schiff which could merit further inquiry by the Ethics Committee. 

The source also indicated the ethics panel also has the ability to make a criminal referral to the Justice Department. But the chances of that are slim. That’s because the Ethics Committee is split five to five between Democrats and Republicans. Moreover, Republicans don’t like Schiff because of some of his activities related to Congress. The "Speech or Debate" clause of the Constitution in Article I, Section 6 mostly inoculates lawmakers from prosecution related to their official duties in Congress. 

ADAM SCHIFF DODGES BULLET: HOUSE VOTES AGAINST BILL CENSURING HIM FOR TRUMP-RUSSIA ‘LIES’

So, the new resolution to censure Schiff likely comes up by mid-week in the House. It’s doubtful the House would vote to table or set aside the new resolution if Luna worked things out with her GOP colleagues. This vote would likely mean an up or down vote on censure for Schiff.

The House has only censured 25 members in history. The last was Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., in 2021. The Democratic-led House censured Gosar after he shared an edited, animated video on social media which looked like he was killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. The House also voted to censure former Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y., in late 2010 for a host of offenses, including using House resources for personal benefit.

After the House voted to sidestep the initial resolution, Schiff embraced becoming a target of the GOP.

"It’s a badge of honor when you take on the MAGA crowd. They clearly think I am effective in holding the former President accountable," said Schiff to colleague Hillary Vaughn.

But Luna accused Schiff of flaunting his reprieve.

"It brings me joy to see that he thinks that," said Luna.

The Florida Republican said that Schiff "was singing a different tune" after she informed him of her mulligan.

However, Schiff could reap political benefit of censure. He’s running to succeed Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., in the Senate next year. Feinstein isn’t seeking re-election. Schiff’s toughest challenge at the ballot box comes from two Democrats: Reps. Katie Porter, D-Calif., and Barbara Lee, D-Calif.

"It’s an in-kind contribution to Adam Schiff’s campaign," said Los Angeles Times political columnist Mark Barabak of Luna’s attempt to censure Schiff. "Any hour that we’re talking about House Republicans going after Adam Schiff is a good day for his Senate campaign."

Still, Democrats say censure is retribution.

"This is the new normal," observed Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill. "Be careful how well you do your job or you might be on the outside looking in."

There is concern about the weaponization of censure. A tit-for-tat. But Luna will try to sanction Schiff this week. No one wants the ignominy of becoming only the 26th member in House history to face censure. However, the political reality for Schiff is the house is penalizing him for going to the mat with former President Trump. That’s an achievement of which Schiff’s Senate opponents can only dream.

Democrat slammed after accidentally saying Trump ‘needs to be shot’ before quickly correcting herself

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Democrat Virgin Islands Del. Stacey Plaskett appeared to accidentally say that former President Trump "need to be shot" while discussing his classified documents investigation.

Plaskett, who represents a nonvoting U.S. territory, was criticizing Trump's handling of classified documents during a live segment on MSNBC Sunday when she made the perplexing comment.

"Having Trump not only having the codes but now having the classified information for Americans and being able to put that out and share it in his resort with anyone and everything who comes through should be terrifying to all Americans," Plaskett told MSNBC.

"He needs to be shot," she said, before quickly attempting to correct herself by adding "stopped."

TRUMP INDICTMENT TURNS 2024 ELECTION UPSIDE DOWN, BUT NOT THE WAY DEMOCRATS HOPE

The video immediately began circulating social media, with several Twitter users taking the comment seriously and calling for her removal from office.

"Imagine the outrage if a Republican said this about a Democrat," conservative communicator Steve Guest tweeted.

"Dontcha' hate when your mouth says What you are really thinking?" WorldStrat Corporation President Jim Hanson tweeted.

"This is a direct threat to President Trump and someone needs to investigate. Plaskett needs to be removed immediately," a Twitter user wrote Monday. "That’s not a slip of the tongue. She’s an adult. She should be able to handle public speaking with her position. #RemovePlaskett."

IN OR OUT? NEW POLL WHERE REPUBLICAN VOTERS STAND IN SUPPROT OF TRUMP AFTER SECOND INDICTMENT

"Quite the Freudian slip from Stacey Plaskett," another individual wrote.

Ryan Fournier, founder of Students for Trump, also posted the video and said "lock her up!"

While Plaskett claims that Trump having classified documents "should be terrifying to all Americans," recent polls indicate the former president received a boost in support among the GOP after being indicted for alleged mishandling of classified documents.

Plaskett also claimed in the interview that Trump is "going to have his day in court," after the former president pleaded not guilty to 37 federal charges stemming from the classified documents probe.

"Of course, he’s going to have his day in court," the Democrat told MSNBC. "Let’s remember that he was indicted by his peers — individual Americans who live in South Florida, a red state — they saw enough that there was probable cause for him to bring this indictment for him to stand trial."

Plaskett has a history of strong opposition to Trump, serving as an impeachment manager in the case against the former president in 2021, in which House impeachment managers argued that Trump was "singularly responsible" for the January 6th Capitol riot. Despite the Democrat's efforts, Trump was acquitted after the second impeachment trial in February 2021.

Plaskett did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.