Fox News’ Harris Faulkner on Tuesday caught Republican Florida Rep. Mike Waltz dodging her question about members of his party holding out on supporting an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.
Some Republicans have come out against an inquiry, pushing for a less hastened approach or otherwise arguing there is a lack of evidence surrounding Biden’s alleged knowledge or involvement with his son, Hunter Biden’s, foreign business dealings. Waltz argued presidents have historically become more popular during their impeachment trials.
Republicans who’ve spoken out against the inquiry are Don Bacon of Nebraska, Ken Buck of Colorado, Mike Lawler of New York, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.
“But those are Republican holdouts,” Faulkner said. “I understand why Democrats don’t want this, but why not members of your own party?”
“My point is, this isn’t, and nor should it be, about politics,” Waltz said. “History shows the politics may, if we don’t do this the right way, work against us. That’s why Biden is establishing an impeachment war room. But this is about getting to the truth, this is about transparency: was there obstruction of justice and was, at the highest levels of government, an influence, a scheme, that influenced American policies?”
“Not just for New Zealand or the United Kingdom or for some allied country, but for some of the most difficult and adversarial countries that the United States faces in the world,” he continued. (RELATED: ‘What Is Congress Supposed To Do?’: Jonathan Turley Reveals How Biden Can Put Impeachment Inquiry ‘To Rest’)
Speaker McCarthy on Tuesday called on the House GOP to launch an impeachment inquiry into the president after continued pressure from Republican Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz and other members of his party. The inquiry will be carried out by the House Judiciary Committee and House Oversight Committee.
The speaker said he believes there is enough evidence to launch the impeachment inquiry following testimony from two whistleblowers with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in June. An impeachment inquiry would allow Congress more access to evidence of Biden allegedly benefiting from Hunter’s foreign business dealings while serving as vice president.
“Today, I am directing our House Committee to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden,” McCarthy said. “This logical next step will give our committees the full power to gather all the facts and answers for the American public. That’s exactly what we want to know: the answers.”
White House spokesperson Ian Sams said Tuesday morning “[t]he House GOP investigations have turned up no evidence of wrongdoing by POTUS. In fact, their own witnesses have testified to that, and their own documents have showed no link to POTUS.” (RELATED: House Oversight Pushes Back On White House’s Claim Of ‘No Evidence’ Linking Joe Biden To Hunter Business Deals)
The White House has previously insisted Joe Biden was “not in business” with his son, and the president has said he has never “spoken” with Hunter about his foreign business dealings.