(Washington) – A parliamentary hearing on US President Joe Biden's son, a favorite target of the Republican opposition, turned into a free-for-all session on Wednesday, after the surprise appearance of Hunter Biden.
In the morning, a House of Representatives committee was discussing a resolution aimed at convicting the fifty-year-old man of obstructing the investigative powers of Congress when he stormed Congress surrounded by his lawyers.
Conservatives accuse Hunter Biden, who faces two counts of tax fraud, of carrying out questionable actions in Ukraine and China by taking advantage of his father's networks and name.
He is also under fire from Republicans for refusing to participate in a closed-door congressional hearing on his financial interests abroad – and Hunter Biden is calling for a public hearing.
“Afraid”?
“Who bribed Hunter Biden to be here today?” », launched Nancy Mace, a Republican elected official from South Carolina.
“You are the embodiment of white privilege, coming here before the committee, spitting in our faces, ignoring a parliamentary subpoena to hear you. What are you afraid of ? “You don’t have any courage,” she said, going so far as to tell the president’s son.
“We can hear it now. Let's vote and listen to Hunter Biden. What are you afraid of?” a Democratic elected official responded.
Then Arizona Republican-elect Andy Biggs stepped in to urge his colleagues, with a stern look, to stop interrupting and not act like “a bunch of idiots.”
Shortly after, as Trump supporter-elect Marjorie Taylor Greene prepared to speak, Hunter Biden left the room.
“What a coward,” she commented.
Abroad, Abe Lowell, the lawyer for the president's son, accused Republicans of wanting to reach his father, who is running for re-election, through him. The November election should pit Biden against the right-wing front-runner, Donald Trump.
Republicans are trying to pass a resolution against “someone who publicly offered to answer all their questions.” The question here is: What are they afraid of? Mr. Lowell said to the cameras.
Hostilities
At the same time, another committee held a hearing on a possible indictment of Biden's Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, who the American right accuses of being responsible for the “migrant crisis” on the US-Mexico border.
Mr. Mayorkas was not present.
“The elements at our disposal say it clearly: Secretary Mayorkas is the architect of the devastation we have been witnessing for nearly three years,” deplored Tennessee Republican-elect Mark Green at the opening of the hearing.
Nearly 10,000 migrants were arriving daily at the US border from Mexico in December, a record number and a “humanitarian disaster,” according to governors.
The American executive authority confirms that its request for an additional $14 billion to secure the borders has been blocked in Congress for months.
In order for Alejandro Mayorkas to be removed from office, a majority of lawmakers in the House must first vote to impeach him before the Senate, which in turn must obtain a two-thirds majority to complete the process.
This is a practically impossible scenario, given that Republicans only have a very small majority in the House of Representatives, while the Senate has a Democratic majority.
With these hearings, Republicans are intensifying their hostilities against the Democratic president in this election year.
House conservatives have also launched an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden, whom they accuse of using his influence while vice president of Barack Obama (2009-2017) to allow his son Hunter to do business in China and Ukraine.
The president, his son, and Democrats categorically deny these accusations.
