President McCarthy announces an impeachment investigation into President Biden

Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced Tuesday that House Republicans will move forward with an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.

“Today, I am directing our House committee to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden,” McCarthy said at the U.S. Capitol.

“This next logical step will give our committees full power to gather all the facts and answers for the American public,” he added. “That’s exactly what we want to know: the answers. I think the president would like to answer those questions and allegations as well.”

McCarthy said House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Media and Media Committee Chairman Jason Smith will lead the investigation.

“I do not take this decision lightly,” the speaker said. “Regardless of your party, or who you voted for, these events affect all Americans.”

McCarthy has made it clear that there will be a vote on an impeachment inquiry, but he doesn’t seem to have the votes to open one yet.

A campaign is already underway to persuade resisters like Republican Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo. Buck will receive a briefing from House Oversight Committee staff this week on the investigations into President Biden, sources familiar with the matter said.

McCarthy has directed an impeachment probe of Biden for weeks to obtain bank records and other documents from Biden and his son, Hunter.

In August, McCarthy told Fox News, an impeachment inquiry would provide “Congress with the maximum legal power to get all the information they need.” So far, Republicans have been unable to prove any wrongdoing by President Biden.

White House spokesman Ian Sams responded to McCarthy’s comments at the time in a social media post: “‘A natural step forward’ based on what?”

“This crazy exercise is not rooted in fact [and] true, but shamelessly partisan,” Sams wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

McCarthy said Monday that House Republicans, during the August recess, discovered “serious and credible allegations about President Biden’s conduct. Taken together, these allegations paint a picture of a culture of corruption.”

The announcement of a formal impeachment inquiry comes as McCarthy seeks to stave off a possible revolt by hard-line conservatives and avoid a government shutdown.

The House returns from recess Tuesday with a fast-approaching Sept. 30 deadline to pass a spending measure to keep the government open. House Republican leaders are seeking to pass a continuing resolution, or a short-term funding extension, to buy more time to hammer out the details of a broader appropriations package.

But members of the House Freedom Caucus, the same group that held up McCarthy’s rise to the presidency and opposed his debt limit deal with President Biden, have said they would not support a continued resolution unless it includes some language about border security and “weaponizing the DOJ.” The group also opposes more aid to Ukraine, which could put the House at odds with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.

Amid the tension, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz has publicly threatened to introduce a motion to remove McCarthy. The motion would force a vote on whether McCarthy should continue as speaker.

McCarthy sidestepped the threat, telling reporters Monday evening: “I should go ahead and do it … from Matt, Matt.”

“We’ve got a lot of work, we’ve got a lot to do in September. We’ll do our job just like we’ve been doing,” McCarthy added.