Hunter Biden to Appear for Deposition Next Month in Impeachment Probe
The new willingness to testify in a deposition comes after two House committees voted to hold the president’s son in contempt of Congress.
Republicans move forward with Mayorkas impeachment amid emotional testimony; Dems decry ‘MAGA spectacle’
Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee pushed forward with their efforts to impeach DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas after emotional testimony from two victims of the border crisis, and Democrats moved to have their own hearing and slammed what they said was a "MAGA spectacle" from the majority.
Republicans on the committee all voted to push forward with the impeachment of Mayorkas, who Republicans have blamed for mishandling the ongoing crisis at the southern border. A markup on the impeachment is expected before the end of the month.
"The Secretary has consistently willfully and systematically refused to follow the laws passed by Congress, abused his authority, and breached the trust of Congress and the American people on numerous occasions," the 18 Republicans said after the hearing.
HOUSE HOMELAND GOP CALLS FOR MAYORKAS WRITTEN TESTIMONY; DHS SLAMS ‘BAD-FAITH’ IMPEACHMENT PUSH
"The result of his failure to fulfill his oath of office has been a border crisis that is unprecedented in American history – a crisis that has cost the lives of thousands of Secretary Mayorkas’ fellow Americans," it said.
The hearing itself, the second impeachment hearing, focused on the victims of crime and featured testimony from Tammy Nobles, whose daughter was killed by an illegal immigrant MS-13 gang member, and Josephine Dunn, who lost her daughter to fentanyl poisoning.
"This is not a political issue. This is a safety issue for everyone living in the United States. This could have been anyone's daughter. I don't want any other parent to live the nightmare that I am living," Nobles said.
"In my humble opinion, Mr. Mayorkas’ border policy is partially responsible for my daughter's death," Dunn said, arguing that Arizona has become a "fentanyl superhighway" into the U.S.
But amid that testimony was a fierce political back-and-forth between Republicans and Democrats over the testimony of Mayorkas himself and potential additional hearings. Mayorkas had expressed willingness to testify in-person but had said he couldn’t attend this hearing. Republicans have said the lack of specificity amounts to stonewalling and that they have been trying to get him to testify at a border-specific hearing since August.
DHS pushed back on those claims, accusing Republicans of "playing politics."
"It’s abundantly clear that they are not interested in hearing from Secretary Mayorkas since it doesn’t fit into their bad-faith, predetermined and unconstitutional rush to impeach him. Last week, the Secretary offered to testify publicly before the Committee; in the time since, the Committee failed to respond to DHS to find a mutually agreeable date," spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg said ahead of the hearing.
"Secretary Mayorkas can object all he wants, but the paper trail is clear--he has consistently, tacitly refused to show up," the majority responded on X, formerly known as Twitter, after accusing Mayorkas of "indefinite delays."
On Thursday, the White House weighed in, accusing Republicans of "choosing to play extreme, far-right politics" and of "attempting to scapegoat a Cabinet secretary who is actively working to find solutions to a problem Congressional Republicans have spent years refusing to actually solve."
Democrats on the committee moved on Thursday to request a minority-led hearing, arguing that House rules require such a hearing in an impeachment inquiry. Republicans argued that it is not necessary because they have their own witness at the hearing.
Ranking member Bennie Thompson accused Republicans of having "predetermined the outcome."
HOUSE HOMELAND DEMOCRATS BACK MAYORKAS, SLAM GOP ‘SHAM’ AHEAD OF IMPEACHMENT HEARING
"This isn't a real impeachment. It's a MAGA spectacle, paid for [with] American tax dollars for Republican political gain," he said.
The fight is the latest flash point in the battle over the narrative of the border between Republicans and the Biden administration.
Republicans have pinned the crisis on the Biden administration, saying its "catch-and-release" policies, reduced interior enforcement and rollback of Trump-era border policies have sparked the historic surge to the border, leaving Border Patrol agents overwhelmed and unable to stop the influx gotaways and fentanyl.
The administration has said it is dealing with a hemisphere-wide crisis and needs more funding and immigration reform from Congress. It has also pointed to what it says are a record number of removals since May, greater than in all of fiscal 2019, and record seizures of fentanyl at the border.
House lawmakers will interview Hunter Biden next month as part of impeachment probe into president
President Biden's son, Hunter Biden, will provide a closed-door deposition to House investigators on Feb. 28, lawmakers announced Thursday.
House GOP schedules Hunter Biden deposition
Hunter Biden plans to testify behind closed doors as part of House Republicans' sweeping impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden on Feb. 28.
Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) announced the private deposition with the president's son on Thursday, following a week of negotiating with his lawyers. Just last week, Republicans were threatening to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a prior subpoena.
“Hunter Biden will appear before our committees for a deposition on February 28, 2024. His deposition will come after several interviews with Biden family members and associates. We look forward to Hunter Biden’s testimony,” Jordan and Comer said in a statement.
Republicans view Hunter Biden as a key witness in their impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden, which has largely focused on his family’s business agreements.
Hunter Biden deposition scheduled for next month after risk of being held in contempt of Congress
Hunter Biden is expected to sit for a deposition as part of the House impeachment inquiry against President Biden at the House Judiciary and House Oversight Committees next month, after the first son defied a congressional subpoena and was at risk of being held in contempt of Congress.
The House Judiciary Committee announced the newly-scheduled deposition date on X, formerly Twitter, Thursday evening.
"HUNTER BIDEN DEPOSITION. CONFIRMED. FEBRUARY 28," the X post reads.
"Hunter Biden will appear before our committees for a deposition on February 28, 2024," House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan said in a joint-statement Thursday. "His deposition will come after several interviews with Biden family members and associates."
They added: "We look forward to Hunter Biden’s testimony."
Comer and Jordan also announced additional witnesses will appear before the committee for testimony, including Hunter Biden’s business partners Mervyn Yan and Rob Walker on Jan. 22; Eric Schwerin and Joey Langston on Jan. 29; and Hunter Biden’s former business partner Tony Bobulinski on Feb. 5.
Hunter Biden's new deposition date comes after the House Oversight Committee and the House Judiciary Committee last week passed resolutions to hold him in contempt of Congress for defying a congressional subpoena.
Hunter Biden's attorneys offered to discuss scheduling a new deposition for the first son — something House Republicans were willing to do.
Hunter Biden, ahead of his subpoenaed deposition on Dec. 13, had offered to testify publicly. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, rejected his request, noting that the first son would not have special treatment and pointing to the dozens of other witnesses who have appeared as compelled for their interviews and depositions. Comer and Jordan vowed to release the transcript of Hunter Biden’s deposition.
The first son, though, defied the subpoena, ignored the offer and recently delivered a public statement outside the Capitol. At the time, he said his father "was not financially involved in my business."
As the House advanced the resolutions to continue to take steps to hold Hunter Biden in contempt, his attorney, Abbe Lowell, last week asked that the committees issue a new subpoena.
Lowell penned a letter to the committees on Friday, saying the initial subpoenas were "legally invalid" as they were issued before the full House of Representatives voted to formalize the impeachment inquiry against the president.
"If you issue a new proper subpoena, now that there is a duly authorized impeachment inquiry, Mr. Biden will comply for a hearing or deposition," Lowell wrote. "We will accept such a subpoena on Mr. Biden's behalf."
"The committees welcome Mr. Biden’s newfound willingness to testify in a deposition setting under subpoena," Comer and Jordan wrote at the time.
"Although the Committee’s subpoenas are lawful and remain legally enforceable, as an accommodation to Mr. Biden and at your request, we are prepared to issue subpoenas compelling Mr. Biden’s appearance at a deposition on a new date in the coming weeks."
GOP has enough support to bring Mayorkas impeachment to House floor
All Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee announced their support Thursday for impeaching Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, signaling that the case has enough votes to clear the panel and head to the full chamber for a vote.
New Mexico state Republicans file impeachment articles against Dem governor over gun control
Two Republican state lawmakers in New Mexico filed a resolution Wednesday to impeach Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, accusing her of breaking her oath to the U.S. Constitution over her use of emergency public health orders to restrict the right to carry firearms in some public places.
Reps. Stefani Lord and John Block claim that with the restriction, Lujan Grisham infringed upon the rights of New Mexicans.
"The rights of New Mexicans are not up for debate, and no matter how hard Lujan Grisham tries to violate the Constitution, she will never succeed," Lord said in a statement. "I stood firm against her tyranny when she tried to use a Covid health order to take our guns, and I will continue to stand firm against her continued attempts to destroy our Republic."
Lujan Grisham, a second-term Democrat, invoked the emergency orders last year in response to a spate of gun violence, including the fatal shooting of an 11-year-old boy outside a minor league baseball stadium. The orders restrict firearms in places like parks and playgrounds in the greater Albuquerque area.
NRA PREPARES FOR BATTLES AGAISNT BLUE STATE GOVERNOR ‘TORCHING THE CONSTITUTION’ WITH GUN CONTROL
Block accused the governor of "violating the Constitution to make a political statement," noting that Lujan Grisham said she expected legal challenges from the outset.
In the federal court system, a judge has allowed enforcement of the gun provision to continue while legal challenges run their course.
NEW MEXICO GOVERNOR'S STATE OF THE STATE SPEECH DISRUPTED BY PROTESTERS
In response to the impeachment articles, Lujan Grisham spokesperson Maddy Hayden said in an email to The Associated Press that the two lawmakers are more interested in political stunts than crafting meaningful legislation, citing their bills to criminalize necrophilia and offer sex offenders an early release from prison if they agree to chemical castration procedures.
"There's not much to say in direct response to this inane effort," Hayden said, referring to the impeachment resolution.
Democrats outnumber Republicans in both chambers of the state legislature. Both the House, with a simple majority vote, and Senate, with a two-thirds vote, would have to vote to impeach the governor.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Wisconsin Republican push to impeach elections official faces internal opposition
A Republican attempt to impeach Wisconsin's nonpartisan top elections official is nothing more than "a big show for the cameras" and will be ignored, the Assembly's GOP majority leader said Thursday.
Several Republican lawmakers, including the state Senate president, have called for Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe to be impeached over her handling of the 2020 election won by President Biden. The Senate voted in October to fire Wolfe but later admitted that the vote was symbolic and had no legal effect.
In the Assembly, state Rep. Janel Brandtjen has introduced a resolution to impeach Wolfe. As of Thursday, it had just five co-sponsors in addition to Brandtjen. It would require 50 votes to pass.
WISCONSIN REPUBLICANS CLASH OVER MEDICAL MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION PLAN
Brandtjen tried in vain on Tuesday to be recognized to speak in an attempt to get a vote on her proposal. Brandtjen, who has endorsed discredited conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, accused Republican leaders of being "Administrator Wolfe's PR team."
During a news conference before Thursday's session, Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August said Brandtjen's proposal would not be voted on because it doesn't have enough support to get out of committee or be approved by a majority of the Assembly.
"We have a process that has been utilized in this building for decades of how to bring a bill or a resolution to the floor," August said. "And that’s the process that we’ll continue to use."
August said if Brandtjen has enough support to bring the measure forward for a vote, she can.
"But the fact is she doesn’t," August said. "Our caucus is focused on real things, not grifting and not making a big show for the cameras. And that’s all she’s interested in doing."
Even as the impeachment effort stalls, Republicans have called for Wolfe to be replaced. But she has said she will remain in her post at least through the November election.
WISCONSIN GOP TO PROPOSE TAX CUTS FOR FAMILIES EARNING UP TO $200K
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is being targeted for recall by supporters of former President Donald Trump, in part over his opposition to the Wolfe impeachment. Trump in November posted a news release on his social media platform Truth Social from Brandtjen criticizing Vos for not doing more to remove Wolfe.
The Assembly can only vote to impeach state officials for corrupt conduct in office or for committing a crime or misdemeanor. If a majority of the Assembly were to vote to impeach, the case would move to a Senate trial in which a two-thirds vote would be required for conviction.
Although Wolfe is the administrator of elections, it is the more than 1,800 local clerks who actually run elections in the presidential battleground state. The commission she oversees is run by a bipartisan board with an equal number of Republicans and Democrats.
Brandtjen and others who support impeaching Wolfe had pushed for decertification of Biden's 2020 win. Biden defeated Trump by nearly 21,000 votes in Wisconsin, an outcome that has withstood two partial recounts, a nonpartisan audit, a conservative law firm’s review, and multiple state and federal lawsuits.
Louisiana gov orders state law enforcement to track illegal immigrant crime
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has signed an executive order requiring every government agency to capture data on the activities of illegal immigrants in the state -- including the number of those charged or convicted of a criminal offense.
Landry, a Republican, signed the order which directs every executive branch agency to "consider the effects of illegal immigration" on their agencies and offices and collect data relating to the "provision of public services or the expenditure of public funds directly or indirectly to, or for the benefit of illegal aliens."
The executive order will also require law enforcement to collect and report data on a monthly basis on the number of aliens charged or convicted and include their citizenship, nationality and immigration status. It will also require the reporting of criminal history, gang affiliation and whether they are in the country legally or illegally.
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT POPULATION SOARS UNDER BIDEN: GOVERNMENT DATA
"The cost of illegal immigration in this state is falling on the shoulders of hard-working Louisianans," Landry said in a statement. "This Executive Order will analyze data to determine the financial burden our citizens are being forced to carry because of those who do not follow the law,"
"Louisiana will always welcome those who legally immigrate, but taxpayers cannot continue to foot the bill for individuals who break the law and skip the line," he said.
The order comes amid national concern in both Democratic and Republican areas about the ongoing costs of the historic migrant crisis at the southern border -- which has extended its reach far beyond the southern border.
Democratic cities like New York City and Chicago have pleaded for help from the federal government due to the flood of migrants they’ve seen into their cities. Meanwhile, Republican attorneys general have testified to Congress about the effects of illegal immigration and fentanyl -- which is primarily trafficked through the border -- on their states.
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Republicans have blamed the Biden administration for what it says are "catch-and-release" policies and narrowed interior enforcement. The executive order says that the administration "has failed to prevent the illicit entry of aliens and has…enacted policies designed to undermine the rule of law and encourage and induce the illegal entry of historic numbers contrary to law."
The Biden administration has said it is a "broken system" that is drawing migrants to the border amid a hemisphere-wide crisis, and that it needs funding and immigration reform legislation from Congress to fix it.
Congress is currently debating a supplemental funding request from the White House that includes $14 billion for the border crisis, including aid to states and communities. But Republicans want to see stricter limits on asylum and a more limited use of parole.
‘Whatever He’s Doing, I Hope It’s More Important’: Mother Who Lost Daughter to Fentanyl Rips Mayorkas for Skipping Impeachment Hearing
The House Homeland Security Committee held its second and final Mayorkas impeachment hearing on Thursday.
