A pair of House committees advanced resolutions on Wednesday to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress, setting up the full House for a floor vote centered on the president’s son as early as next week.
The near-identical resolutions passed the Judiciary and Oversight committees along party lines. All Republicans voted in favor of them, while all Democrats voted against them.
The votes came after the committees issued subpoenas to Hunter Biden to appear for a closed-door deposition on Dec. 13, 2023, but President Joe Biden‘s son flouted them, instead appearing that morning outside the Capitol building and reiterating his position that he is willing to testify publicly but not in a closed-door setting.
Hunter Biden then stunned Capitol Hill on Wednesday by making a brief appearance at the Oversight Committee hearing on the contempt vote.
He sat in the gallery of the committee room at the start of the proceedings but left as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) began to use her designated speaking time to ask him questions.
His appearance prompted sharp reactions from committee lawmakers, including Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), who tore into him for his visit.
“You are the epitome of white privilege, coming into the Oversight Committee, spitting in our face, ignoring a congressional subpoena to be deposed,” Mace said. “What are you afraid of? You have no balls.”
The Oversight Committee hearing, which lasted nearly eight hours, devolved into arguments and, in some instances, lewd references. In a viral gaffe, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) joked after stumbling over the word “insurrection” and saying “erection,” while Greene resurfaced photos, this time censored, of Hunter Biden in the nude.
While the president’s son was still there, Democrats defended him, demanding that Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY) allow the president’s son to testify publicly, noting that Comer had in the past publicly displayed a willingness to allow the first son to do so.
“They pulled a bait-and-switch,” ranking member Rep. James Raskin (D-MD) said. “They changed the terms of their request.”
Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) asked Comer to acknowledge that he had offered Hunter Biden the option to testify publicly.
“I’ve said repeatedly: After the deposition, Mr. Biden can come in front of a public hearing,” Comer replied, later adding, “Mr. Biden doesn’t make the rules. We make the rules.”
The younger Biden was accompanied by attorneys Abbe Lowell and Kevin Morris during his appearance.
Speaking to reporters as they exited, Lowell said Hunter Biden has communicated with Republican lawmakers six times in the past year about cooperating with them. He accused Comer of ignoring his client’s offer to testify publicly, saying the chairman was attempting to use a closed-door deposition to “distort, manipulate, or misuse” his testimony to mislead the public.
Republicans have conveyed that they prefer to interview the first son, like other witnesses, in a closed-door setting, where attorneys involved with investigating him can ask questions in hourlong increments. In a public hearing, lawmakers have five-minute windows to ask questions.
Comer also has vowed to make the entirety of the transcript of any closed-door interview with Hunter Biden public.
The president’s son could still change his position and agree to meet on lawmakers’ terms, but if he does not, the contempt resolution is expected to move to the floor for a full House vote as soon as next week, according to a source familiar.
If it passes, it will be referred to the Department of Justice and, specifically, U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves’s office in Washington. The DOJ declined to comment on the matter.
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Graves, an appointee of the elder Biden, will have discretion over whether he wants to move forward with prosecuting the younger Biden. The Washington-based prosecutor has reviewed four contempt referrals, all for Republicans, since taking office in 2021.
He moved forward with prosecuting former Donald Trump advisers Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro. He declined to prosecute former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows and deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino.