The long-awaited Hunter Biden deposition is scheduled to be held behind closed doors Wednesday after months of him refusing to speak to House investigators.
It comes as the House Oversight and Judicial Committees continue to gather information in the House impeachment investigation into his father President Joe Biden.
Biden agreed to sit for the interview under oath only after defying a congressional subpoena and facing potential contempt of Congress charges, saying he did not want to testify privately for fear House Republicans would selectively report his testimony, The Washington Examiner reported.
The interview will differ from that of Hunter’s uncle, James Biden, in that it will not be filmed. In addition, sources familiar with the process said the transcript will be released quickly to the public, according to CNN.
His appearance will represent the impeachment inquiry’s most significant testimony to date, as the probe focuses heavily on his foreign business dealings and how much his father knew about them or was involved in his actions.
Biden’s testimony comes after the Justice Department indicted former FBI information Alexander Smirnov, whose allegations about Joe Biden last fall were cited as a reason to open the impeachment inquiry into the president.
Smirnov alleged Ukrainian entities paid millions in bribes to Joe and Hunter Biden, but has been charged with fabricating a piece of his story, potentially throwing a wrench into the proceedings.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., has stated the committees have sufficient evidence to move forward with the inquiry even without Smirnov’s testimony.
“The House Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means Committees have unearthed a record of evidence revealing Joe Biden was ‘the brand’ his family sold to enrich the Bidens,” Comer told Newsmax in a statement Tuesday. “Joe Biden knew of, participated in, and benefited from these schemes. Joe Biden attended dinners, spoke on speakerphone, showed up to meetings, and had coffee with his son’s foreign business associates.
“In fact, we’ve documented how Joe Biden has met with nearly all of his son’s foreign business associates as they were collectively funneling millions to the Bidens.
“Our committees have the opportunity to depose Hunter Biden, a key witness in our impeachment inquiry of President Joe Biden, about this record of evidence. This deposition is not the conclusion of the impeachment inquiry.
“There are more subpoenas and witness interviews to come. We will continue to follow the facts to inform legislative reforms to federal ethics laws and determine whether articles of impeachment are warranted.”
The committees will hear Hunter Biden’s testimony in an interview, but will eventually move on to public hearings including him and other witnesses, according to a House source.
Hunter Biden, meanwhile, told Axios in an extensive interview that he is concerned a relapse in his fight for sobriety could be used by former President Donald Trump, his father’s likely opponent in November’s general election.
“You have to believe that you’re worth the work, or you’ll never be able to get sober, but I often do think of the profound consequences of failure here,” Hunter Biden, a recovering drug addict, told Axios.
“Maybe it’s the ultimate test for a recovering addict, I don’t know,” he added. “I have always been in awe of people who have stayed clean and sober through tragedies and obstacles few people ever face. They are my heroes, my inspiration. And now I have something much bigger than even myself at stake. We are in the middle of a fight for the future of democracy.”
The president, meanwhile, has told confidants he is concerned about his son, who is facing 17 years in prison in connection with federal tax and firearms charges. Sources say Biden does not believe his son would have been charged if he had not run for reelection in 2024.
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