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Most of the GOP Leadership in the Senate have come out in opposition of President Biden in recent weeks, claiming that the decision would be a distraction and that it would not be a “fruitful endeavor”.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), previously said impeaching Biden would “not be good for the country,” but declined to weigh in much on the matter on Tuesday when the impeachment inquiry was announced, only saying that McCarthy did not need his advice.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), a member of the Senate GOP leadership team, said, “Rather than doing something they know is unlikely to end the way they would like, maybe they want to emphasize other things” but that the Senate could still investigate President Biden without a formal inquiry.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-SD) distanced himself from the impeachment inquiry, saying that the Senate needed to focus on “keeping the trains running.” Thune indicated that he does not believe that conducting an impeachment trial during the middle of the Senate trying to pass government funding for the upcoming fiscal year would be a fruitful endeavor.
When asked if there’s enough evidence to impeach Biden, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.VA), another member of the Senate GOP leadership team, replied: “I do not.”
Punchbowl News has reported that Barrasso was the only Republican in leadership who backed McCarthy’s efforts, telling the publication that it was important for the House to “untangle this web of corruption that we’ve seen coming out of this administration and specifically the Biden family.”
“I did not reach this decision lightly,” the California Republican said late Tuesday in a letter to rank-and-file GOP lawmakers. “However, this logical next step will allow our committees to gather all the facts and provide answers for the American people.”
In his letter to House members, McCarthy wrote that the House’s investigation so far has “found that President Biden lied to the American people about knowledge of his family’s foreign business dealings.”
McCarthy added that “Eyewitness testimony revealed that the President joined multiple phone calls and had various interactions with his son’s business partners. For example, Devon Archer, Hunter Biden’s business partner, testified that Joe Biden spoke or met with Hunter Biden’s business associates around 20 times, and that after meeting with President Biden, foreign nationals sent Hunter Biden millions of dollars, and bought him a Porsche.”
The three panels expected to take lead, according to CNN: the House Judiciary Committee, led by Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio; the House Oversight Committee, led by Rep. James Comer of Kentucky; and the House Ways and Means Committee, led by Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri. All three have been involved into investigations into the Biden family.
