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Comer, Jordan Threaten Hunter Biden With Contempt of Congress


By Charlie McCarthy    |   Wednesday, 06 December 2023 02:14 PM EST

Read more at https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/comer-jordan-hunter-biden-house/2023/12/06/id/1145009/

House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, on Wednesday threatened Hunter Biden with contempt of Congress charges if he fails to appear for a Dec. 13 deposition before the oversight panel. Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, earlier in the day sent Comer a letter to reiterate that Hunter Biden is willing to testify before the House panel in a public hearing, but not for a deposition.

Lowell said Hunter Biden was “making the choice [to appear publicly] because the Committee has demonstrated time and again 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.”

The House Oversight account on X, formerly known as Twitter, then responded with a copy of Comer’s letter.

“Contrary to the assertions in your letter, there is no ‘choice’ for Mr. Biden to make; the subpoenas compel him to appear for a deposition on December 13,” Comer wrote to Lowell.

“If Mr. Biden does not appear for his deposition on December 13, 2023, the Committee will initiate contempt of Congress proceedings.”

Comer subpoenaed Hunter Biden early last month.

Last week, Hunter Biden offered to testify publicly as Republicans investigate his foreign business dealings as they pursue an impeachment inquiry into his father, President Joe Biden. Comer, on X, then accused Hunter Biden of “trying to play by his own rules instead of following the rules required of everyone else.”

House Republicans have not initiated contempt proceedings against anyone this year. They threatened both Secretary of State Antony Blinken and FBI Director Christopher Wray with charges after unsuccessful attempts to obtain certain documents from them, the Washington Examiner reported. Blinken and Wray averted contempt votes by reaching 11th-hour agreements with Republicans.

If the full House votes to hold someone in contempt, it is referred to the Department of Justice, which then has discretion over whether it wants to begin criminal proceedings against the person. There have been contempt votes since 2008, with the DOJ pursuing indictments against Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon, both aides to then-President Donald Trump.

Charlie McCarthy | editorial.mccarthy@newsmax.com

Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.

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Rep. Comer Releases Resolution Holding Wray in Contempt


By Charlie McCarthy    |   Wednesday, 07 June 2023 11:12 AM EDT

Read more at https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/comer-wray-contempt/2023/06/07/id/1122695/

The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability released its resolution and accompanying report Wednesday recommending that FBI Director Christopher Wray be found in contempt of Congress for his refusal to comply with a subpoena. Wray has refused to turn over an unclassified whistleblower document that apparently alleges a $5 million bribery scheme on behalf of then-Vice President Joe Biden and his family with an “adversarial” foreign country.

Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., announced Monday that a House hearing was planned for Thursday to consider holding Wray in contempt of Congress. The resolution released Wednesday concludes that “Wray’s actions impeded and caused meaningful delays to the Committee’s ability to perform its Constitutional oversight duties. As Director Wray and his staff have willfully failed to comply with the Committee’s subpoena, it is necessary to enforce the subpoena.”

Comer released a statement with the resolution.

“We have been clear that the FBI must produce the unclassified FD-1023 record to the custody of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. To date, the FBI has refused to comply with our lawfully issued subpoena and even refused to admit the record’s existence up until a week ago,” Comer said in the release.

“Once Director Wray confirmed the record’s existence, the FBI started their coverup by leaking a false narrative to the media.”

Comer added that the case “is not closed as the White House, Democrats, and the FBI would have the American people believe.”

“The FBI created this record based on information from a credible informant who has worked with the FBI for over a decade and paid six figures. The informant had first-hand conversations with the foreign national who claimed to have bribed then-Vice President Biden,” Comer said.

“And now, [former] Attorney General [Bill] Barr has confirmed that the record was given to the U.S. Attorney in Delaware for the purpose of that investigation.”

The Trump administration Justice Department under Barr reviewed the whistleblower claim in the unclassified document, and the DOJ or FBI decided against acting on it.

Comer is determined to find out why.

“Americans have lost trust in the FBI’s ability to enforce the law impartially and demand answers, transparency, and accountability,” the chairman said. “The Oversight Committee must follow the facts for the American people and ensure the federal government is held accountable.”

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