Jayapal tells fellow Dems not to ‘out-Republican the Republicans’ on immigration amid funding talks

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., on Thursday scolded fellow members of her party for trying to "out-Republican the Republicans" on immigration, as Democrats and the Biden administration tried to find common ground on border security measures as part of an emergency supplemental funding deal.

A number of Democrats have expressed concern over a CBS News report which said the White House was open to a number of policy proposals on the border to get its supplemental funding request for the border, Ukraine and Israel passed. Those included a Title 42-style authority allowing for rapid expulsions at the border, increased detention and nationwide expedited removal.

Republicans – who had demanded stricter border security measures to combat the ongoing migrant crisis – have said there have been positive signs from the talks and suggested a deal could be within reach. But left-wing Democrats and immigration activists have accused the White House of "selling out" migrants and asylum seekers.

CONSERVATIVE GROUPS, EX-BORDER OFFICIALS DEMAND LAWMAKERS REJECT ‘UNACCEPTABLE’ BORDER COMPROMISE

Jayapal, the chair of the House Progressive Caucus, responded on X, formerly Twitter, to a tweet by Washington Post columnist Greg Sargent, who said sarcastically that Republicans had promised not to attack President Biden over the border as part of the deal.

"Exactly the problem that I have watched for decades," Jayapal said. "Dems try to out-Republican the Republicans on anti-immigration policies, mistakenly thinking that GOP will thank us for ‘fixing the border.’ NEWSFLASH: This is same party that just voted for [Biden’s] impeachment inquiry."

She went on to claim that Republicans have no interest in fixing the immigration system.

REPUBLICANS SEE PROGRESS IN BORDER TALKS, BUT UNCLEAR IF DEAL WITHIN REACH AS CRISIS RAGES

"It has been too politically valuable to have immigrants to blame for everything. Giving in to this hostage taking just encourages them to do more of it and not stop till they have destroyed immigration as we know it," she said.

DEMOCRATS FUME OVER REPORTED BIDEN OFFER TO REINSTATE TITLE 42-TYPE MIGRANT EXPULSIONS

She then said Republicans are hoping to break apart the coalition that elected Biden in 2020, warning that swing voters will "swing right out to the couch" if they feel betrayed. She also said the proposals would only make things worse at the border.

"We'll go into 2024 with continued xenophobic Trumpian attacks, a completely demoralized base that won't vote over betrayals, & a decimated asylum system that cuts against our core," she said.

"We'll never out-Republican the Republicans – nor should we want to. All we'll do is create more chaos in an already-broken immigration system, deny people seeking to escape horrific conditions the right to seek asylum & lose voters who trusted us to stand up for them. Enough," she said.

She then renewed Democrat calls to abolish the Senate filibuster, expand "legal pathways" and pass "real comprehensive immigration reform."

The posts came as the clock ticks down on a potential deal, with lawmakers expected to depart Washington on Thursday. Meanwhile, a number of conservatives have also expressed concern about the deal, demanding that the entirety of the House GOP border legislation passed earlier this year be included.

On Friday, other lawmakers also expressed concern about getting a deal done before lawmakers break for the holidays.

"The small group negotiating a ‘deal’ in secret may reach agreement among themselves, but then we will need time to review it and determine whether it will actually solve the problem and has any chance of passing in the House," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said on X.

Here’s what’s in Hunter Biden’s new California indictment

President Biden's embattled son Hunter Biden is facing a new set of tax-related charges in California.

Hunter Biden is facing nine charges alleging a "four-year scheme" when he did not pay his federal income taxes from January 2017 to October 2020 while also filing false tax reports.

The charges break down to three felonies and six misdemeanors centered around $1.4 million in owed taxes that were since paid.

HUNTER BIDEN FACES NEW INDICTMENT IN CALIFORNIA

Special Counsel David Weiss alleged Hunter "engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019, from in or about January 2017 through in or about October 15, 2020, and to evade the assessment of taxes for tax year 2018 when he filed false returns in or about February 2020."

Weiss said that, in "furtherance of that scheme," the younger Biden "subverted the payroll and tax withholding process of his own company, Owasco, PC by withdrawing millions" from the company "outside of the payroll and tax withholding process that it was designed to perform."

The special counsel alleged that Hunter "spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills," and that in 2018, he "stopped paying his outstanding and overdue taxes for tax year 2015."

Weiss alleged that Hunter "willfully failed to pay his 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 taxes on time, despite having access to funds to pay some or all of these taxes," and that he "willfully failed to file his 2017 and 2018 tax returns on time."

FROM SEX CLUBS TO STRIPPERS: HERE ARE THE 5 MOST SALACIOUS DETAILS FROM THE HUNTER BIDEN INDICTMENT

"[W]hen he did finally file his 2018 returns, included false business deductions in order to evade assessment of taxes to reduce the substantial tax liabilities he faced as of February 2020," Weiss alleged.

Counts one, two, four and nine allege that Hunter did not pay his taxes in the years 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, respectively.

Counts three and five allege that Hunter failed to file his taxes in the years 2017 and 2018, respectively.

Count five of the indictment noted that Hunter raked in a "gross income in excess of $2.1 million" and alleged the presidential scion failed to pay his taxes on his millions of dollars of income.

Count six alleges Hunter's "evasion of assessment for 2018 Form 1040" regarding his taxes, while count seven alleges Hunter filed "a false and fraudulent 2018 Form 1040."

The sixth count also alleges Hunter "finally filed his 2018 Form 1040 in 2020 in order to avoid being held in contempt of court in two civil proceedings."

Additionally, count eight alleges Hunter filed "a false and fraudulent 2018 Form 1120."

Hunter pleaded not guilty in October to federal gun charges in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware after being charged out of Weiss' yearslong investigation. 

Thursday's development comes ahead of an expected vote from House Republican leaders next week on a measure that would formally initiate an impeachment inquiry into President Biden over possible ties to his son's business dealings.

Hunter's defense attorney Abbe Lowell attacked Weiss over the Thursday charges, accusing the special counsel of "bowing to Republican pressure" when talking to the press.

"Based on the facts and the law, if Hunter’s last name was anything other than Biden, the charges in Delaware, and now California, would not have been brought," Lowell said in a statement.

Fox News Digital's Bradford Betz, Jake Gibson, David Spuntz and The Associated Press contributed reporting.

December deadlines: Things are a little different around Capitol Hill before the Christmas cutoff

Every December seemingly has a deadline on Capitol Hill.

To impeach the President.

To fund the government.

To avoid the fiscal cliff.

To raise the debt ceiling.

To approve a payroll tax cut.

To pass tax reform.

To allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

To pass Obamacare.

To undo Obamacare.

But things are a little different around Capitol Hill this December.

CONGRESS AIMS TO HOLD VOTE TO INITIATE BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY

There’s no single, sweeping issue that is consuming Congress. Sure, there are lots of things to do. In fact, big things — which we’ll outline shortly. But the feeling this Christmas at the Capitol is different. No government shutdown is looming (talk to us about that in January and February). And while Congress has faced concrete deadlines before, there is no absolute, drop-dead date to complete anything.

Except there is a cutoff point. It’s the same as every other year: December 25th.

Lawmakers have three weeks to handle lots of things.

But it’s unclear if they’ll crank through them. And that’s why there’s the potential for Congress to linger in Washington and maybe — just maybe — still slam into the December 25th deadline.

Let’s start with impeachment.

No, the House is not going to impeach President Biden before Christmas. You might remember that December is kind of "impeachment month" on Capitol Hill. The House impeached President Clinton on Dec. 19, 1998, for obstructing justice and lying after his affair with Monica Lewinsky. The House impeached former President Trump — the first time — on Dec. 18, 2019, for abusing his power and obstructing justice as it pertained to Ukraine.

Notice a pattern?

While those votes were actual resolutions to impeach the President, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is just pushing a plan to formalize an impeachment inquiry. FOX is told the goal is to pass the impeachment probe resolution next week.

HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO HOW THE SANTOS EXPULSION WILL AMPLIFY PRESSURE ON DEMOCRATS TO DEAL WITH MEN

House Republicans have nibbled around the edges of impeachment for months. But the House never adopted a measure officially authorizing impeachment.

"Now we're being stonewalled by the White House because they're preventing at least two to three DOJ witnesses from coming forward," said Johnson on FOX. "So a formal impeachment inquiry vote on the floor will allow us to take it to the next necessary step. And I think it's something we have to do at this juncture."

Plus, Johnson needs to notch a political and legislative win.

Johnson hasn’t had much to crow about since he first clasped the Speaker’s gavel in October. He quickly passed a bill to boost Israel in its fight against Hamas. But since then, Johnson has presided over a House majority that encountered multiple stumbles in efforts to pass their own spending bills. The highlight of Johnson’s short tenure may have been the expulsion of former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y. — which Johnson and other GOP leaders opposed.

But impeachment could boost the GOP — especially as Congress stares at the possibility of dual government shutdowns over the winter.

"If it goes to the floor, we're going to pass it. There's no question," said House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., about an impeachment inquiry vote.

It’s about the math.

Republicans can only lose three votes on their side and prevail and still open an impeachment investigation. For months, moderates resisted an impeachment vote. Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., initiated an impeachment inquiry — without an official vote — because he never had the votes. Moreover, McCarthy needed to do something to move the needle on his side of the aisle when GOP spending bills began stalling on the floor and conservatives grew restless over his debt ceiling pact with President Biden.

But votes to potentially launch an impeachment inquiry began to fall into place over the past few weeks. House Republicans believe things changed over Thanksgiving — after lawmakers were marooned in Washington for nearly 11 consecutive weeks since late summer.

"They met people in Walmart and people on Main Street, and they're like, ‘What in the world did the Bidens do to receive millions and millions of dollars from our enemies around the world? And did they not pay taxes on it?’ So they heard from their constituents," said House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky.

Democrats accuse Republicans of a political diversion ahead of an election year.

GOOD TIDINGS AND CHEER, UNLESS YOU'RE IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

"This is all part of a phony effort by extreme MAGA Republicans to distract the American people because they have no track record of accomplishment," said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.

But impeachment isn’t what is most vexing to many on Capitol Hill this December.

Major issues loom over passing the annual defense policy bill. But it faces a dispute over declassifying some information related to Unidentified Aeriel Phenomena (UAPs). Renewing the foreign surveillance counter-terrorism program known as "FISA." And then there is the big one: President Biden’s international aid package for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan. The status of that bill is much harder to read because there’s no hard deadline — except Christmas. And the end of the year. And then when the focus pivots in January to averting a government shutdown.

To some, it would be hard to see Congress leaving town before the holiday without addressing Israel and Ukraine. Republicans insist that Democrats attach a robust border security plan to the package. However, Republicans aren’t even in agreement on what those border provisions might look like. But, if the plan blows up, Republicans hope to blame Democrats who are getting hammered politically for not tackling the border.

White House Budget Director Shalanda Young sent an urgent letter to lawmakers Monday, saying Congress was about to "kneecap" Ukraine by not passing the aid.

Talks over the border went sideways in recent days, perhaps scuttling the supplemental spending plan.

And if Congress doesn’t pass the international aid bill?

"You can bet Vladimir Putin is watching. Hamas is watching. Iran, President Xi, North Korea, all of our adversaries. They’re watching closely," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "If Congress fails to defend democracy in its hour of need because of border policies inspired by Donald Trump or Stephen Miller, the judgment of history will be harsh indeed."

But Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., lashed his colleagues across the aisle.

"Democrats appear to be hell-bent on exhausting every half-baked idea before they get serious about actually fixing our border," said McConnell. "Senate Republicans know that national security begins with border security. And we’ve made it crystal clear that in order to pass the Senate, any measure we take up in the coming days must include serious policy changes designed to get the Biden Administration’s border crisis under control."

So it’s unclear if the fight over the border and the international aid package could keep Congress here close to Christmas this year — entering the special legislative pantheon of five-alarm fires which have screwed up other holiday seasons on Capitol Hill.

But things are a little different around the Capitol this December.

And even if Congress abandons Washington without finishing everything, no one will be celebrating.

Top Oversight Democrat slams GOP for keeping Hunter Biden hearing out of public view

House Oversight Committee ranking member Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., slammed committee Republicans for refusing Hunter Biden's request for a public hearing on Dec. 13, when Biden will appear for a closed-door deposition.

In a statement Tuesday, Raskin called the Republicans' actions an "epic humiliation" and said their hesitancy to let the president's son give public testimony is "a frank confession that they are simply not interested in the facts and have no confidence in their own case or the ability of their own Members to pursue it. 

"Let me get this straight," Raskin said. "After wailing and moaning for ten months about Hunter Biden and alluding to some vast unproven family conspiracy, after sending Hunter Biden a subpoena to appear and testify, Chairman Comer and the Oversight Republicans now reject his offer to appear before the full Committee and the eyes of the world and to answer any questions that they pose?"

HUNTER BIDEN AGREES TO HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE TESTIMONY

Earlier Tuesday, Hunter Biden's attorney Abbe Lowell wrote to House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., and offered to let the president's son appear before the committee, with C-SPAN cameras rolling, and answer lawmakers' questions about his family's business dealings. The letter came in answer to a subpoena issued by Comer for Hunter Biden and his family members and business associates to sit for a closed-door deposition as part of the GOP-led investigation into the Biden family's business dealings. 

"We have seen you use closed-door sessions to manipulate, even distort the facts and misinform the public. We therefore propose opening the door," Lowell wrote. "If, as you claim, your efforts are important and involve issues that Americans should know about, then let light shine on the proceedings." 

HOUSE GOP SUBPOENAS DOJ PROSECUTOR WHO ALLEGEDLY TRIED TO SHIELD BIDEN DURING FEDERAL PROBE INTO SON HUNTER

In reply, Comer accused Biden of "trying to play by his own rules" and rejected his request to testify publicly on Dec. 13. However, the chairman agreed that Biden "should have the opportunity to testify in a public setting at a future date." 

No future hearing has yet been scheduled. 

BIDEN'S CLAIM TO HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE OF HUNTER'S BUSINESS DEALINGS IS BECOMING HARDER TO MAINTAIN

House Republicans have opened an impeachment inquiry into President Biden to examine evidence and allegations that Hunter Biden leveraged his father's positions in government to make unethical business deals with foreign partners, from which President Biden allegedly received payouts. But at the first public inquiry hearing, GOP witnesses said there was not yet enough evidence to prove the president committed an impeachable offense. 

Raskin said Republicans won't schedule a public hearing for Hunter Biden to testify because it would expose how their case against his father is weak. 

"After the miserable failure of their impeachment hearing in September, Chairman Comer has now apparently decided to avoid all Committee hearings where the public can actually see for itself the logical, rhetorical and factual contortions they have tied themselves up in," he said. 

"The evidence has shown time and again President Biden has committed no wrongdoing, much less an impeachable offense. Chairman Comer’s insistence that Hunter Biden’s interview should happen behind closed doors proves it once again. What the Republicans fear most is sunlight and the truth." 

Fox News' Chad Pergram contributed to this report.

Marjorie Taylor Greene moves to censure Rashida Tlaib over ‘sympathizing with terrorist’ orgs

Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene introduced her House resolution to censure "Squad" member Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., accusing her of "antisemitic activity" and "sympathizing with terrorist organizations."

Greene dropped her resolution to force a House vote to censure Tlaib on Thursday, the day after the House elected its new speaker, Louisiana Republican Rep. Mike Johnson.

"I just introduced my resolution to censure Rashida Tlaib as privileged to force a House vote in two legislative days," Greene wrote online.

MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE TO BRING RESOLUTION TO CENSURE RASHIDA TLAIB, ACCUSING HER OF ‘ANTISEMITIC ACTIVITY’

"Tlaib led a pro-Hamas insurrection into the Capitol complex, has repeatedly displayed her anti-Semitic beliefs, and shown her hatred for Israel," she continued.

"She must be held accountable and censured," Greene added.

Greene read her resolution on the House floor on Thursday while introducing the legislation.

Tlaib published a press release on Thursday attacking Greene's censure resolution as "unhinged" and "deeply Islamophobic."

"Marjorie Taylor Greene’s unhinged resolution is deeply Islamophobic and attacks peaceful Jewish anti-war advocates," Tlaib said. "I am proud to stand in solidarity with Jewish peace advocates calling for a ceasefire and an end to the violence."

"I will not be bullied, I will not be dehumanized, and I will not be silenced," the "Squad" Democrat continued. "I will continue to call for ceasefire, for the immediate delivery of humanitarian aid, for the release of hostages and those arbitrarily detained, and for every American to be brought home."

"I will continue to work for a just and lasting peace that upholds the human rights and dignity of all people, and ensures that no person, no child has to suffer or live in fear of violence," she added.

Greene previously told Fox News Digital that the Democratic Party "has done nothing to hold [Tlaib] accountable" and have "done nothing to rein her in, and no one else here has done it."

"And so I thought it was right to list examples of – this isn't just new," Greene said. "This isn't a one-off thing. This is exactly who she is."

Greene accused Tlaib of leading a pro-Palestinian protest on Capitol Hill last week. Hundreds of demonstrators called for a ceasefire after the terror group Hamas staged an unprecedented, bloody incursion from the Palestinian exclave of Gaza into southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing hundreds of civilians and prompting an ongoing response from the Israeli military.

Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, spoke at the protest, during which activists took over much of the ground floor at the Cannon House Office Building. 

In those comments, she blamed Israel for bombing a hospital in Gaza – remarks she did not retract after multiple intelligence agencies said that existing proof indicated the blast came from a misfired Hamas rocket.

Greene called the protest "an insurrection" in her resolution.

In the resolution, Greene also referenced Tlaib’s endorsement of a slogan used by Hamas and the Palestine Liberation Organization. She also recalled Tlaib’s past comments in which she called Israel "an apartheid government."

Fox News Digital's Elizabeth Elkind contributed reporting.

House Democrats celebrate Republican chaos after helping GOP rebels oust speaker McCarthy

Some House Democrats celebrated the motion to vacate Speaker Kevin McCarthy from the House, while others described it as a "solemn" day in America.

All 208 House Democrats who were present voted to oust McCarthy Tuesday afternoon. Five Republican votes were needed to boot McCarthy, and eight ultimately voted with Democrats to put the nail in the coffin.

"This is a solemn day in the U.S. House of Representatives," Democratic Whip Katherine Clark said in a statement Tuesday. "Through his duplicitous misuse of power, profound disregard for the needs of the American people, and disloyalty to anyone but himself, Kevin McCarthy has proven unworthy of presiding over the House."

She added: "But the Republican civil war is bigger than one man. Right-wing MAGA extremism has enveloped the Republican Party and taken over the business of the People’s House."

GAETZ TAKES VICTORY LAP AFTER HISTORIC VOTE TO BOOT MCCARTHY FROM HOUSE SPEAKERSHIP

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., echoed the sentiment, deeming the vote a "solemn" moment in America.

"House Democrats will continue to put people over politics and work together in a bipartisan way to make life better for everyday Americans. It is our hope that traditional Republicans will walk away from MAGA extremism and join us in partnership for the good of the country," he said.

"Republicans, you’re welcome to join us and vote for Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker of the House," Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., a progressive "squad" member said on X.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., another member of the squad, called McCarthy a "threat to our democracy" in a lengthy statement posted to X.

"He literally voted to overturn the 2020 election results, overthrow the duly elected President, and did nothing to discourage his Members from doing the same," Omar said of McCarthy. 

HOUSE DEMOCRATIC LEADERS SAY THEY WILL VOTE TO OUST MCCARTHY

Omar added McCarthy is a "weak politician."

Rep. Chuey Garcia, D-Chicago, also said on X he has "no interest in bailing out Team Extreme."

Hardline conservatives and progressive Democrats locked arms across the aisle to seal the deal on Tuesday, as the vote to vacate commenced after an hour of passionate debate with McCarthy supporters and dissenters.

Both parties pointed fingers at McCarthy, as Gaetz introduced a motion to vacate on Monday night, accusing him of breaking the promises he made to win the speaker's gavel in January. Meanwhile, Democrats condemned his "lack of interest in bipartisanship" and Republicans jabbing his failure to pass a government spending patch with additional border security provisions and not enough budget cuts. 

Democrat Rep. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey said McCarthy "empowered right wing extremists" and "consistently broke his word."

"Instead, Mr. McCarthy empowered right-wing extremists at every turn - bringing us to the brink of defaults and shutdowns, failing to uphold the debt-ceiling agreement he made with the President, relentlessly attacking women's reproductive freedom, blocking votes to prevent gun violence, and launching a baseless impeachment inquiry built on lies and conspiracy theories," she said.

MATT GAETZ INTRODUCES MOTION TO VACATE AGAINST HOUSE SPEAKER KEVIN MCCARTHY

Democrats signaled early on Tuesday that they would not be inclined to help McCarthy. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said before the vote: "Democrats are ready to find bipartisan common ground. Our extreme colleagues have shown no willingness to do the same. They must find a way to end the House Republican Civil War."

In January, it took 15 rounds of voting until McCarthy was elected.

McCarthy angered hardliners over the weekend when he passed a short-term spending bill known as a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government open for 45 days, in order to avert a government shutdown and give lawmakers more time to cobble together 12 individual spending bills.

Fox News' Liz Elkind contributed to this report. 

Democrats decry House impeachment hearing of Biden: ‘Waste of time’

Democrats vehemently decried the first House Oversight Committee’s impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden on Thursday as a "waste of time" and "illegitimate" as Congress simultaneously races against the clock to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR) deal and prevent a looming government shutdown before Saturday’s deadline.

"Republican extremism is rearing its ugly head," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters Thursday morning. "They are wasting time and taxpayer dollars on an illegitimate Impeachment Inquiry when we're about 48 hours away or so from an extreme MAGA, republican government shutdown — and this is what they're focused on, an illegitimate impeachment inquiry as opposed to doing the business of the American people."

Other Democrats followed suit on X, formerly known as Twitter, adding their own criticisms of the hearing.

"The government shuts down in TWO DAYS, and House Republicans are… wasting time today holding a sham impeachment hearing??? Stop playing political games. Do your jobs. Fund the government," Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., posted to X. The congresswoman previously voted to impeach former President Donald Trump in 2021. 

MACE CALLS DEM CLAIMS ON IMPEACHMENT PUSH 'COMPLETE AND TOTAL BULLS---'

California state Democrat and Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said on X: "We are going to hit back on every lie and conspiracy theory." 

"We are ready to push back on a sham impeachment inquiry," Garcia posted Wednesday evening.

Texas Democratic Rep. Greg Casar called the impeachment hearing "baseless."

"My job is to defend the truth, while extremist Republicans try to defend Trump through their fact-free inquiry against President Biden," Casar posted to X.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., posted a snarky photo with a thumbs up and holding a box of Bud Light with a sign saying: "TO: REP. COMER & HIS SQUAD A PROFILE IN COURAGE CAN MAKE A GUY THIRSTY. CONGRATULATIONS, THIS BUD'S FOR YOU. HUGS & KISSES: JOHN FETTERMAN." 

HOUSE GOP TO PRESENT EVIDENCE AGAINST BIDEN IN FIRST IMPEACHMENT HEARING 

House Republicans on Thursday morning presented evidence uncovered so far in their investigation into the Biden family’s business dealings while examining "the value" of an impeachment inquiry.

"The House Oversight and Accountability Committee has uncovered a mountain of evidence revealing how Joe Biden abused his public office for his family’s financial gain," Comer said in his opening statement. "For years, President Biden has lied to the American people about his knowledge of and participation in his family’s corrupt business schemes."

"Evidence reveals that then-Vice President Joe Biden spoke, dined, and developed relationships with his family’s foreign business targets. These business targets include foreign oligarchs who sent millions of dollars to his family," Comer said. "It also includes a Chinese national who wired a quarter of a million dollars to his son."

Comer was referring to subpoenaed Hunter Biden financial records, which revealed he received two wires originating from Beijing and linked to BHR Partners in 2019.

Fox News Digital first reported that Hunter Biden received the wire payments, which originated in Beijing, for more than $250,000 from Chinese business partners during the summer of 2019 — wires that listed the Delaware home of Joe Biden as the beneficiary address for the funds.

HUNTER BIDEN RECEIVED $250K WIRES ORIGINATING IN BEIJING WITH BENEFICIARY ADDRESS LISTED AS JOE BIDEN'S HOME

The White House did not respond to Fox News’ Digital request for comment.

"Today the House Oversight Committee has uncovered how the Biden's and their associates created over 20 shell companies, most of which were created when Joe Biden was vice president and raked in over $20 million between 2014 and 2019," Comer said. "We've also identified nine Biden family members who have participated in or benefited from these shady business schemes."

Committee Democrats repeatedly accused Republicans of taking cues from Trump in launching the inquiry and used the opportunity to highlight the former president’s myriad legal issues.

"President Trump has gone on his social media account and said we should be impeaching President Biden," ranking member Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said in his opening statement. "Kevin McCarthy said we have an impeachment inquiry. You draw the conclusion. Directly or indirectly, this impeachment inquiry was a result of President Trump's pressure."

Fox News’ Brooke Singman and Jessica Chasmar contributed to this report.

Oversight Dems admit Hunter’s longtime business partner handled Biden’s finances throughout VP tenure

FIRST ON FOX: House Democrats acknowledged Wednesday that Hunter Biden’s then-business partner, Eric Schwerin, handled President Biden’s finances for the duration of his vice presidency.

A spokesperson for the Democrat minority of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability told Fox News Digital that Schwerin, the former president of Hunter’s Rosemont Seneca Advisors and a frequent visitor to the Obama-Biden White House, served as then-Vice President Biden’s "bookkeeper" from 2009 to 2017.

"Notably, Mr. Schwerin, who served as then-Vice President Biden’s bookkeeper from 2009 to 2017, explained that he was not aware of any transactions into or out of the then-Vice President’s bank account related to business conducted by any Biden family member," the spokesperson said in a statement.

The statement came after Fox News Digital inquired about a section of the White House’s lengthy memo to the media on Wednesday as it scrambles to respond to House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry into President Biden.

‘MONEY GUY’: THIS HUNTER BIDEN BUSINESS PARTNER COULD BLOW THE LID OFF BIDEN FAMILY'S BUSINESS DEALINGS

The White House issued a memo that urged news outlets to ramp up scrutiny of the impeachment inquiry announced Tuesday by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who said House Republicans have "uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Biden's conduct."

The White House memo included a 14-page fact-check of Republicans’ claims made throughout the Biden investigation with regard to the president's purported role in his son's foreign business dealings and whether the Biden family used the former vice president’s public office for personal profit.

"Republicans’ own witnesses such as Eric Schwerin, a former business associate of Hunter Biden, said President Biden was not involved in their business dealings," the White House said on page 13 of the memo.

"’In a March 2023 interview with Republican and Democratic Committee staff, Mr. Schwerin told Committee staff he was not aware of any involvement by President Biden in the financial conduct of the President’s relatives’ businesses, much less any transactions into or out of the then-Vice President’s bank account related to business conducted by any Biden family member,’" the White House continued, citing a paragraph from the Oversight Democrats’ memo in May.

A person familiar with Schwerin's role in handling then-Vice President Biden's finances told Fox News Digital that Schwerin worked on Biden's personal budget and helped coordinate with his tax preparers.

The individual also pointed to the frequency of Schwerin's communications with Biden and his top aides and said it was "inevitable" Rosemont Seneca business came up in conversations.

ERIC SCHWERIN’S ROLE IN HUNTER BIDEN’S CHINESE BUSINESS DEALS COULD BE MISSING KEY IN GOP INVESTIGATIONS

A House Oversight spokesperson for the Republican majority told Fox News Digital that the committee "never interviewed Schwerin" as claimed by committee Democrats and later by the White House.

"This is false," the spokesperson said. "The Committee never interviewed Schwerin. There was a meeting but it was about document production. There has never been a transcribed interview or deposition."

The committee Democrats spokesperson fired back in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying Schwerin, who Hunter previously admitted was a "close confidant and counsel" of then-Vice President Biden, was indeed interviewed by committee staff for multiple hours on March 31, 2023, following a request from Comer.

"In written correspondence to the Committee, Mr. Schwerin’s counsel described this as a ‘non-transcribed interview,’" the statement continued. "Majority and Minority staff had equal time and switched off asking Mr. Schwerin questions about his relationship with Hunter Biden, as well as the history, structure, and activities of Hunter Biden’s business entities, to which Mr. Schwerin responded."

Schwerin’s lawyer, however, told Fox News Digital that Schwerin was not technically a "bookkeeper" to the then-VP but rather he simply assisted the then-VP with his finances.

Fox News Digital has previously reported on Schwerin’s extensive ties to the Biden family, both personal and professional, and how he was instrumental in Hunter expanding his enterprise in China.

Peter Schweizer, the president of Government Accountability Institute and an expert on Hunter's business dealings, told "Sunday Morning Futures" host Maria Bartiromo last month that "Eric Schwerin was the money guy" in Hunter's business ventures.

Schwerin, who visited the Obama White House and then-Vice President Biden’s residence at least 36 times between 2009 and 2016, was also a founding partner and managing director of Hunter's now-dissolved firm Rosemont Seneca Partners. He was working with Hunter's firms when he was appointed in early 2015 by then-President Obama to the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad, an independent U.S. government agency.

Hunter’s ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle, who was married to the president’s son from 1993 to 2017, revealed in a memoir in June 2022 that Schwerin "managed almost every aspect of our financial life."

The White House did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

House GOP fires back at ‘smear merchant’ Dem operative targeting families of lawmakers investigating Bidens

FIRST ON FOX: A longtime Democratic operative and activist says he will be investigating the families of Republican lawmakers in response to the move by the GOP to investigate President Biden and son Hunter’s overseas business dealings, sparking backlash from a pair of House Republicans.

"Gloves are off, families are on," David Brock, Democratic activist and president of Facts First USA, recently told Puck News. "We’ve been looking into how the children of those same members may have benefited from their parents’ position. We’re not shy about going after the members."

Brock, a longtime Clinton ally who founded Media Matters for America and American Bridge 21st Century, announced in November he was leaving the left-wing groups after nearly two decades to launch Facts First USA to help President Biden fight Republicans in the new Congress.

"This work has been ongoing, and we will soon have more to share publicly about a key member of Republican leadership whose family has gotten multiple jobs from their Congressional donors," a spokesperson for Facts First USA told Fox News Digital. 

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"If people want to investigate the Biden family, then what's good for the goose is good for gander. But no one should feel intimidated if they aren't doing anything improper."

Brock, who got his start as a conservative freelance reporter before switching to the Democratic Party in the mid-1990s, was once described by former Center for American Progress president Neera Tanden, who is currently a top Biden aide, of being "bats--- crazy." 

He's been a prominent face in Democratic circles for nearly two decades. The New York Times reported in November that Brock's progressive groups "play important roles in the Democratic Party’s ecosystem."

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GOP Congressman Darrell Issa, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, told Fox News Digital the move from Brock reeks of desperation. 

"Nothing says desperation like threatening to sic a smear merchant on innocent families," Issa said. "This is all you need to know about how worried Democrats and the White House are about having to answer for Joe Biden’s culture of corruption." 

Rep. Elise Stefanik, chair of the House Republican Conference, told Fox News Digital that Republicans will not be intimidated by "radical outside groups."

"The far left and their radical outside allies are desperately trying to cover up and distract from Joe Biden's illegal corruption," Stefanik said. 

"They know they cannot pressure House Republicans into stopping our investigation into President Biden, so they are now attempting to intimidate Republicans into stopping our investigations by targeting our families with opposition research attacks from dark money groups. House Republicans will not be intimidated by these radical outside groups."

That alleged culture of corruption led to an announcement this week that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is directing House committees to launch an official impeachment inquiry against Biden looking at ties between the president and son Hunter’s overseas business dealings.

"Over the past several months, House Republicans have uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Biden’s conduct — a culture of corruption," McCarthy posted on social media Tuesday.

Democrats have insisted that the impeachment inquiry is politically motivated, and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday Republicans have "no evidence, none, that [Biden] did anything wrong."

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

Fox News Digital’s Cameron Cawthorne contributed to this report

NM GOP leaders to file suit against Dem Gov Grisham to block gun carry ban

The New Mexico Senate's Republican leader is set to file a lawsuit against Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham in an effort to stop her gun carry ban.

New Mexico state Sen. Gregory Baca told Fox News Digital his lawsuit, filed in conjunction with New Mexico House Minority Leader Rep. Ryan Lane, is his response to the governor's order, cast as a public health measure, barring the concealed and open carriage of firearms in Albuquerque for at least 30 days.

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"We are going to file suit against her this week, most likely today or tomorrow, because of its blatant unconstitutionality," Baca told Fox News Digital, referring to the Second Amendment right to bear arms.

Baca, a lawyer, said he didn't know if the lawsuit would go to the Supreme Court but said he thinks "that it actually doesn't need to go there, because it is so clear that it violates our Constitution… both nationally and at the state level."

The New Mexico Senate GOP leader said there are six lawsuits already filed against Grisham and that he and his colleagues "will be filing at the state court level with the Supreme Court of New Mexico."

When asked if he believes the public health order will be stopped, Baca said, "I do. I think it certainly will be."

"There will be injunctive relief granted on probably all of these lawsuits forcing that health order to be rescinded at that time," he continued. "If that is not the case, she may rescind it on her own just due to pressure from her own party and her own people."

"We have a number of high-ranking Democrats now in this state that are in opposition to it because it's, as I said, it's unconstitutional on its face, including, from what I understand, six Democratic lawmakers from the House," Baca said.

Baca said that, while an impeachment inquiry would have to originate in the state House, should one reach the Senate, the chamber GOP "will give it our full attention."

The Senate Republican leader called out Grisham's statements claiming that her oath to uphold the Constitution is not "absolute."

"I believe that because of some of the words that she stated in her press statement, essentially, she said that herself," Baca said. "She said that she did violate her oath, in which case, I think that, you know, that is just a huge revelation to people."

"I've always understood that the oath I've taken both for the United States military, this office, for the New Mexico State bar, those I take seriously," he continued. "And I have felt that those should not ever be violated."

Baca's lawsuit comes as Grisham faces heavy pushback for her ban on concealed and open carry in Albuquerque.

Grisham is facing widespread outcry from state law enforcement officials following her attempt to ban concealed and open carry permits.

Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen described Grisham's 30-day "public health order" as "unconstitutional" during a press conference this week despite standing beside the governor during her rollout of the policy.

"It’s unconstitutional, so there’s no way we can enforce that order," the sheriff said Monday in a news conference. "This ban does nothing to curb gun violence."

"We must always remember not only are we protecting the Second Amendment, but at the same time, we have a lot of violence within our community. Let me be clear, I hold my standards high, and I do not or never will hedge on what is right," he said.

Grisham's office did not respond to a request for comment.

Fox News Digital's Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this report.