McCarthy floats impeachment of Biden

A potential move to impeach US President Joe Biden has gained momentum following remarks by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

McCarthy floated the possibility of an impeachment inquiry after the release last week of an FBI informant file alleging Biden, vice-president at the time, and his son Hunter were paid a total of $10 million by a Ukrainian energy company.

"This is rising to the level of impeachment inquiry, which provides Congress the strongest power to get the rest of the knowledge and information needed," the California Republican said on Fox News on Monday.

McCarthy wrote on Twitter on Tuesday: "Our investigations are revealing more info every day about the Biden family's shell companies and the sweetheart deal (involving a plea by Hunter Biden) from the DOJ.

"If evidence continues to rise to the level of an impeachment inquiry, House Republicans will act."

Senator Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, last week released an FBI FD-1023 form in which a confidential informant cited discussions in 2015 and 2016 that officials of natural gas company Burisma Holdings sought to pay the Bidens $5 million each in return for help in ousting a Ukrainian prosecutor who was purportedly investigating the company.

Joe Biden has denied any involvement with his son's business dealings.

If Biden were impeached by the House, it is unlikely he would be convicted in the 100-member Senate, which would require a two-thirds vote. The Senate is controlled by Democrats, 51-49.

Republican former president Donald Trump was impeached twice by a Democrat-controlled House, the first time over a phone call to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky about investigating allegations that Joe Biden was involved in the ousting of the prosecutor.

The second impeachment was over the Jan 6, 2021, uprising by Trump supporters at the US Capitol. Trump was acquitted of both impeachments in the Senate.

Representative Bob Good, a Virginia Republican, said after a conservative Freedom Caucus news conference on Tuesday: "When he (McCarthy) does speak to … impeachment, it carries a tremendous amount of weight. And that's why I think the ground shifted on that a little bit when he opened up the door.

"I don't think there's any question that him speaking to that has caused a paradigm shift," Good said.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday of the president: "He's focused on the American family, but they want to focus on his family. They can do whatever it is that they wish to do, but we're going to stay focused."

With a slim majority in the House, McCarthy faces demands from Trump allies to make a political move.

Trump is leading in polls to be the 2024 Republican presidential nominee while soon facing a potential third indictment over attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. He also has been indicted on charges of paying hush money and mishandling of classified documents.

Trump wondered at a Fox News town hall last week why Biden has not yet been impeached.

McCarthy denied a report that he is considering House votes to expunge Trump's two impeachments.

Jaime Harrison, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said Tuesday in a statement: "It's clear that Donald Trump is the real Speaker of the House. This is another political stunt intended to help Trump."

Hunter Biden is expected to plead guilty this week to two misdemeanor charges of failing to pay income taxes and to enter into an agreement that could avert a conviction on a gun-related charge.

McCarthy's appearance Monday on Fox News came as Trump was meeting at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey, with Ohioans including Representative Jim Jordan, the Republican chairman of the Judiciary Committee, who would presumably lead an impeachment inquiry. A spokesman for Jordan said the visit was about unrelated Ohio matters.

The House Oversight Committee is expected to hold a closed-door interview Monday with Devon Archer, a former business partner of Hunter Biden, who was convicted of securities fraud in a separate case. Archer already has canceled scheduled depositions three times.

In a letter to Archer's lawyer, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, a Kentucky Republican wrote: "Mr. Archer's testimony is critical to the Committee's investigation. Mr. Archer was Hunter Biden's business partner in a number of transactions involving foreign nationals and foreign companies."

Agencies contributed to this story.