A funny thing happened on the way to the Forum the House Republican’s planned “getting at” Hunter Biden. More importantly, what’s gotten lost in recent weeks is something James Comer had publicly said in the past. That’s the problem with doing live interviews and podcasts. They get recorded and you can’t count on what you said in them being forgotten when it turns out to be embarrassing for you. I’ll get to that. But let’s start with what happened this morning on Capitol Hill.
Once again Hunter Biden has embarrassed the House GOP by showing up today. Their problem is that they wanted to have at Biden behind closed doors so they could spend days if not weeks selectively leaking his testimony. In a light unfavorable to Hunter of course. Democrats would have to go out and clean it up, and eventually, maybe GOPers would release a full transcript if negative opinion Hunter Biden over his testimony got baked in. How many Americans have time to read a transcript showing how stuff was taken out of context? We’ve seen this game play out from the GOP over and over.
Well, the House GOP issued a subpoena to Hunter Biden. He and his attorney responded in effect fine, let’s do it BUT let’s do things in a PUBLIC hearing. Let’s just get it all out there and be done with it. Predictably Comer, Jordan and others reacted in actual horror. They collectively howled HE CAN’T DO THAT! By which I mean upstage them and worse, pull the rug out from under their well-honed tactics of selective leaking I outlined above. There was talk of how it had NEVER been done that way. And that in due time (? Define “due time pray tell) a transcript would be released, and that if he still wanted to at some unspecified future date a public hearing could be scheduled. (Right after Trump holds infrastructure week or release his “beautiful” health care plan)
The main thing is that the GOP is scared to death of having a public hearing. They still probably wake up in a cold sweat over Hillary Clinton handing them their asses when she spent eleven hours in front of Trey Gowdy’s panel during those “Benghazi!” (gotta include the exclamation point) hearings. Hunter’s willingness to jump straight to a public hearing terrified them. Their buttholes snapped shut so hard they could have made lumps of coal turn into diamonds. So the GOP insisted, demanded in fact that Hunter Biden show up on the Hill today. But for a closed-door deposition.
Well, Hunter Biden showed up as as I said but not where they wanted him to. He gave a presser and pointed out his willingness to answer their questions but only in public for all to see. And GOPers lost their collective sh*t and held their own impromptu presser again claiming no one had ever gotten to do things the way Hunter Biden wanted to do. Now, it’s true that common practice has long been for private depositions prior to public hearings. But not every single time. Then there’s the part I said earlier I’d get to:
James Comer USED to say and on the record that Hunter Biden was going to have to show up, and it was his choice whether he wanted to testify in a public hearing or behind closed doors!
Yep. You read that correctly. It wasn’t that long ago where Comer wanted to get at Biden so badly that he offered him the chance to sit there on TV in a public hearing and take GOPers crap questions. I’m sure he and Jordan (and others) figured that with the criminal charges Hunter Biden was facing there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d show up on the Hill for a publich hearing or even a private deposition absent a Contempt of Congress citation. (Which explains the renewed push for the Joe Biden impeachment “inquiry” vote) I can’t help but wonder what Special Counsel David Weiss has been thinking. He was so cowed by MAGA fury over that busted up plea deal he went back to the drawing board to try to manufacture a case out in CA over back taxes (and penalties) that have already been paid. The last thing he wants or needs is Hunter Biden refuting his case on Capitol Hill whether in private or in public!
In any case, the fact remains as this article from The Daily Beast shows that Comer was at one time saying it was just fine if Hunter Biden wanted to testify in an open hearing:
During an interview with serial plagiarist Benny Johnson last month, though, Comer indicated that the impeachment probe was in its “downhill phase” and that he was looking to “wrap it up as soon as possible.” Additionally, he stated that anyone who was subpoenaed in the inquiry could be deposed or appear publicly.
“We know not only there were crimes, we know there are cover-ups,” he declared. “We have mountains of evidence and now we’re ready to bring ‘em in. We’re in the downhill phase of this investigation now because we have so many documents and we can bring these people in for depositions or committee hearings, whichever they choose, and we can ask these questions with evidence.”
It doesn’t get any clearer or more direct than that. Comer pointedly said Hunter Biden had a choice of either a public or private sit-down with his committee. Of course, Comer’s office had to do some backing and filling when asked to explain Comer’s retraction of the “public hearing” offer and instead demand a private deposition. Maryland Democratic Representative called out Comer over his reversal, and so has Florida’s Jared Moskowitz. Comer has been furious about that. The truth does hurt sometimes as we all know and the truth here is that Comer, who’s hearings have flopped so badly he’s lashing out including some pretty personal stuff at Moskowitz.
It will be interesting to see whether later today the House GOP has the votes to formally authorize an impeachment “inquiry” into President Biden. It will take that for them to try and pass a motion to refer Hunter Biden to DOJ for Contempt of Congress if he refuses to show up on their terms.
Stay tuned.
And when the GOP is done with Hunter, it’s time to go after Billy Carter, that the proceeds from Billy Beer funded at least a half dozen Middle East terrorist groups.