House Speaker Kevin McCarthy surprised viewers of Fox News’ Sean Hannity program on Monday with a claim that President Joe Biden is “rising to the level of an impeachment inquiry.” The comments were fueled by an impending testimony from Hunter Biden’s close friend, Devon Archer, to the House Oversight Committee.
In response, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre deployed a new language, distancing President Biden from his son’s business dealings. Jean-Pierre firmly stated that the president was “never in business with his son,” replacing the previous language President Biden used in the past. This more nuanced description of the two never entering into a business partnership indicates that Jean-Pierre is trying to dodge the possibility of damaging evidence that may come up during Archer’s testimony.
The White House’s rhetoric doesn’t seem to have convinced McCarthy, however, who said on Monday that “there is evidence of the president’s involvement,” and that the White House’s version of events is “not credible.” His comments came after Jean-Pierre gave a flat-out denial of President Biden’s involvement during her Monday briefing to reporters.
Back in 2019, President Biden himself denied any involvement in his son’s overseas business dealings. He said at the time, “I’ve never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings.” Last month, Jean-Pierre reaffirmed his stance, saying, “I just don’t have anything else to share.”
Another White House spokesman, Ian Sams, had also said in an April statement: “As we have said many times before, the President was not in business with his son.” Sams added that the White House had nothing to do with son Hunter’s plea deal, which allowed him to avoid prison time.
This week, Hunter Biden is scheduled to appear in a federal court in Wilmington, Delaware to offer his guilty plea. It is unclear how this plea might impact his testimony on Wednesday.
It remains to be seen if the allegations by McCarthy will be backed up when Archer gives his testimony later this week. However, the new language from the White House seems to be preemptively distancing the President and his son in the hopes of avoiding political damage.
