House Republicans Issue Criminal Referrals Against James, Hunter Biden

The president’s son and brother should face charges of lying to Congress during their separate closed-door interviews earlier this year, according to a recommendation made by the Republican-led committees overseeing the impeachment investigation into Joe Biden on Wednesday.

In a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Special Counsel David Weiss, who is heading separate criminal cases involving Hunter Biden, the Republican committee chairs outlined their case for why the DOJ should seek criminal charges against both Hunter and James Biden.

Even if the criminal referrals do not affect the impeachment investigation of the president, House Republicans are trying to take a more aggressive stance. The probe has not turned up any proof that Biden committed any wrongdoing, and Republicans do not have enough votes in their small majority to impeach him.

A referral, however, just functions as a suggestion that the Justice Department look into the matter and consider charging the concerned parties; it in no way requires federal prosecutors to file a case of that kind. Therefore, at this point, the letter from House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith, House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, and House Oversight Chair James Comer are mainly symbolic.

Based on documents Republicans voted to release from IRS whistleblowers last month, the lawmakers claim Hunter Biden made two false statements during his deposition on February 28 and James Biden made one false statement during his interview with congressional investigators on February 21. The Justice Department confirmed on Wednesday that it had received the referrals. Further comments were rejected by the department.

The Republicans are attempting to link their criminal referral of Hunter Biden to his ongoing criminal trial on felonies related to gun possession, claiming that the DOJ’s assessment of their charges should be influenced by the criminal charge of lying on a gun purchase that he faces.

“According to the Justice Manual, DOJ should consider Hunter Biden’s prior alleged criminal activity when evaluating whether to charge him for the false statements described below,” the letter states.

“It’s nothing more than a desperate attempt by Republicans to twist Hunter’s testimony so they can distract from their failed impeachment inquiry and interfere with his trial,” stated Hunter Biden’s lawyer Abbe Lowell in a statement released on Wednesday. James Biden’s reps have been contacted by CNN.

Republicans claim that Hunter Biden “falsely distanced himself” from his work with Rosemont Seneca Bohai, a company that received millions of dollars in funding from foreigners. Additionally, they assert that he provided a “wholly made-up story” in court regarding purported texts in which he allegedly exploited his father’s influence to get a Chinese business to pay him.

The president has vehemently refuted any involvement or presence on his part at the time his son sent the texts. Hunter Biden further stated in his testimony that his father was not seated next to him and that he was “drunk and probably high” when he sent the messages.

Republicans dispute James Biden’s evidence, claiming that Bobulinski and Hunter Biden, two business associates of the Biden family, refuted Biden’s claim as a private individual.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson urged the DOJ to take prompt action.

“If the Attorney General wishes to demonstrate he is not running a two-tiered system of justice and targeting the President’s political opponents, he will open criminal investigations into James and Hunter Biden,” the Louisiana Republican said.

In a statement accompanying the criminal referrals, Comer said, “We’ve caught President Biden’s son and brother making blatant lies to Congress in what appears to be a concerted effort to hide Joe Biden’s involvement in his family’s schemes.”

Jordan echoed: “These criminal referrals are a reflection of criminal wrongdoing by the Biden family, and the Department of Justice must take steps to hold the Bidens accountable.”

“The IRS whistleblowers have provided indisputable evidence that Hunter Biden broke the law and lied to Congress during his February deposition,” stated Smith, whose committee produced the records Republicans are using to claim the men made false claims.

The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin, denounced the criminal referrals on Wednesday, calling them evidence of the “spectacular failure and collapse” of the presidential impeachment investigation headed by Republicans.

“The Chairmen’s 60-page letter is a last-ditch effort to distract from the exoneration of President Biden by offering ‘gotcha’ accusations against the President’s son and brother based on their efforts to recollect years-old financial transactions, text messages, and conversations in the course of this interminable fishing expedition,” Raskin said.