Republicans provided another textbook example of massive hypocrisy on Wednesday with a letter ordering Hunter Biden to appear for a hearing on Dec. 13. The letter to Hunter’s attorney says that he has no choice. He must appear for a closed-door deposition on that date or face contempt of Congress charges.
Hunter has offered to appear in a public hearing on any date, but Republicans have refused the offer. They want the session closed so that they can selectively dribble out fragments of this testimony they believe fit the narrative they have been building to impeach President Joe Biden. Rep. James Comer has been constructing his case against the president using increasingly ridiculous claims. This week included assertions that Hunter paying back his father for the downpayment on a truck allegedly showed that Joe Biden had received bribes from China.
But the biggest red flag of hypocrisy in the latest letter may be one of the signatures at the bottom. In addition to Comer, the letter was also signed by Rep. Jim Jordan. The same Jim Jordan who infamously refused to appear in response to a subpoena from the Jan. 6 select committee.
Jordan, who was heavily involved in the planning and execution of the attempted overturning of votes on Jan. 6, first insisted that he had “nothing to hide” about those events. But when the select committee investigating Jan. 6 asked Jordan to testify, he refused. That eventually led to Jordan being the subject of a congressional subpoena.
How did Jordan respond to his subpoena? With a list of demands before he would agree to talk. Jordan accused the select committee of “not operating in good faith,” and of being unfair. He insisted that investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection was not a “legitimate task of Congress” because it did not “advance a legitimate legislative purpose.” Because of this, he claimed that both the committee and the subpoenas were unconstitutional. Jordan never appeared before the Jan. 6 select committee.
Jordan insists that investigating an insurrection that included an armed mob crashing through the doors of the Capitol is not part of Congress’ business. However, he apparently believes that checking out small personal loans between a father and son demands the attention of two House committees.
By the test that Jordan himself laid out: Exactly what legislative purpose does questioning Hunter Biden about his truck payments satisfy?
As Laura Clawson reported on Wednesday, Rep. Troy Nehls has made it explicitly clear why Republicans want Hunter Biden to come in. They want to launch an impeachment of Joe Biden, evidence or no evidence, so they can provide Donald Trump with “a little bit of ammo to fire back” going into the 2024 election.
This isn’t about any legitimate concerns over anything that either Hunter Biden or Joe Biden did. It’s about House Republicans trying to prove their loyalty to Trump and provide him with something to sneer over at the next rally.
Hunter Biden’s attorney has made it explicitly clear that Hunter Biden wants to testify publicly because Comer’s committee has demonstrated time and again that “it uses closed-door sessions to manipulate, even distort, the facts and misinform the American public—a hearing would ensure transparency and truth in these proceedings."
Both Comer and Jordan are aware that any hope they would really find something in these hearings to justify further action died over the summer when star witness Devon Archer blew a hole through false claims. They’ve found nothing, because there is nothing, even if Jordan keeps repeating false stories from Rudy Giuliani that were debunked four years ago.
Comer’s “investigation” is a farce. Jordan’s support is the height of hypocrisy. Together they are the Wonder Twins of the Republican House, shaping their committees into a footstool for Trump. Now they’ll get to pound their chests about why the evidence they say should be made public can’t be heard by the public.
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