Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham promised again Sunday to begin an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden because “none of us are above scrutiny.”
The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee has previously said he wants to assess any misconduct by Joe Biden in Ukraine. Graham repeated that pledge on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” even though he called the frontrunner in the Democratic presidential race “one of the most decent people I have ever met in my life.”
“Here’s the deal: this whole process around Ukraine wreaks with politics. They have done everything but take a wrecking ball to Donald Trump and his family. We’re not going to live in a world where only Republicans get looked at,” Graham said. (RELATED: Biden Ignores Heckler’s Question About Ukraine, Tries to Link Trump To El Paso Shooting)
He said his personal opinions about Biden can’t influence his actions as a lawmaker. “As much as I love Joe Biden and I’m sincere when I say that … it’s hard for me to tell my constituents to ignore the fact that Hunter Biden received $50,000 a month from a gas company in Ukraine run by the most corrupt person in Ukraine, and two months after the gas company was investigated, the prosecutor got fired,” Graham told CBS News.
The senator said he hopes there’s nothing to allegations that the Bidens acted improperly in Ukraine but that he needs to find out. President Donald Trump, among others, has accused Joe Biden of having a top Ukrainian prosecutor fired because he wanted to investigate corruption at Burisma.
“I hope I can look at the transcripts of the phone calls between Biden and the Ukraine … and say there is nothing there. These are legitimate concerns about what happened in the Ukraine. I love Joe Biden, but none of us are above scrutiny. I’d like to knock all this off and get back on governing the country,” Graham said.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) holds a copy of an intelligence report on the Steele dossier as he delivers an opening statement prior to hearing testimony from Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., Dec. 11, 2019. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts –
The Senate Judiciary chairman also said he would like to hear from the president’s personal attorney, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who reportedly has just returned from Ukraine with a “suitcase” of documents. But he wants to finish the impeachment trial in the Senate first. (RELATED: Mitch McConnell: If Impeachment Trial Were Held Today ‘It Would Not Lead To Removal’)
“Rudy, if you want to come and tell us what you found, I’ll be glad to talk to you. When it comes to impeachment, I want to base my decision on the record assembled in the House. We can look at Joe Biden and Hunter Biden and anything else you want to look at after impeachment. But if Rudy wants to come to the Judiciary Committee and testify about what he found, he’s welcome to do so.”
Graham repeated his assertion that the ongoing attempt to impeach Trump “is a crock. You’re shutting the president out … You’re weaponizing impeachment, and I want to end it. I don’t want to legitimize it. I hate what [the Democrats] are doing.”