Washington — The House Oversight Committee, led by Republicans, has extended an invitation to President Biden to testify publicly as their impeachment inquiry has hit a roadblock following unfruitful testimony from the president's son.
In a letter spanning seven pages addressed to the president on Thursday, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, the committee's chairman, proposed April 16 as the date for President Biden's potential appearance, although it is highly anticipated that he will decline the invitation.
"I extend an invitation for you to partake in a public hearing where you will have the opportunity to clarify, under oath, your connections to your family's financial resources and the methods employed to accumulate it," Comer stated, highlighting that it is not uncommon for sitting presidents to testify before congressional committees.
Throughout American history, sitting presidents have testified before congressional committees on only three occasions, as documented by the Senate Historical Office. The most recent instance dates back to 1974 when President Gerald Ford testified regarding his decision to pardon former President Richard Nixon.
Last week, Comer hinted at the forthcoming formal request for President Biden's testimony, a move that a White House spokesperson dismissed as a "desperate ploy at the conclusion of a defunct impeachment."
Allegations have been swirling in the Republican-led impeachment inquiry, suggesting that the president benefited from his family members' foreign business dealings during his time as vice president. Despite the intense scrutiny, no concrete evidence of impeachable offenses has been uncovered so far. The inquiry faced a setback when a special counsel appointed by President Trump to investigate Hunter Biden, charged a former FBI informant for allegedly lying about the president and his son receiving $5 million in bribes from a Ukrainian energy company.
The accusations deemed false by prosecutors played a significant role in the Republicans' argument that the president engaged in improper conduct to gain advantages from his family's international business connections.
In a closed-door session back in February, Hunter Biden affirmed to investigators that his father had no involvement in his business dealings. Subsequently, Hunter Biden was called to testify publicly in a March hearing regarding the alleged influence peddling by his family, alongside some of his former business associates, but he chose not to participate.
"Your obvious attempt to stage a media event is not a legitimate proceeding but a desperate move made after the game is over," remarked Abbe Lowell, Hunter Biden's attorney, in response to the invitation.
