AP NEWS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hunter Biden made a surprise visit to a Capitol Hill hearing Wednesday, stirring a political frenzy as Republicans were taking the first step toward holding President Joe Biden’s son in contempt of Congress for defying a congressional subpoena.
The arrival of the president’s son at the Oversight Committee, sitting in the audience with his legal team, including attorney Abbe Lowell, sent the panel that is working to impeach President Biden into chaos.
One Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, insisted that Hunter Biden be quickly arrested. GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia called him a coward as he left during her remarks. Democratic lawmakers argued that Biden, who has refused to testify to the panel behind closed doors, should be allowed to speak publicly.
Hunter Biden has defended his lack of compliance with the GOP-issued subpoena, which ordered him to appear for closed-door testimony in mid-December. Biden and his attorneys said information from private interviews can be selectively leaked and manipulated by House Republicans and insisted that he would only testify in public
On Wednesday, Committee Chairman James Comer struggled to regain control. “Mr. Biden doesn’t make the rules, we make the rules,” he said.
Hunter Biden and his attorneys left shortly after, making a brief statement to reporters outside the hearing room. Lowell reiterated Wednesday that unlike the president, his client “was and is a private citizen.”
“Despite this, Republicans have sought to use him as a surrogate to attack his father,” he said. “And, despite their improper partisan motives, on six different occasions, since February of 2023, we have offered to work with the House committees to see what and how relevant information to any legitimate inquiry could be provided…
