Washington The US House of Representatives wants to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Joe Biden as soon as possible, a so-called impeachment. This was announced by the highest-ranking Republican and speaker of the Chamber of Congress, Kevin McCarthy, on Tuesday. The investigation will focus on “allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption” against Biden, he said.
Since Republicans took over the majority in the House of Representatives in January, they have been investigating past business dealings of Hunter Biden, the president’s son, 54. The Republicans are particularly investigating the question of whether Joe Biden was involved in his son’s questionable business dealings.
So far, the hearings have produced no evidence of wrongdoing, but Republicans hope that the impeachment will provide themselves and the public with “deeper insights into a culture of corruption.”
It is almost impossible that Biden will actually be removed from office. But the impeachment process is still damaging him – on several levels. An overview:
How dangerous is impeachment for Biden?
The US Constitution stipulates that a president can be removed from office for “treason, bribery or other high crimes or misdemeanors” – but the Republicans would have to prove that first. The hurdles for impeachment are high; in addition to a simple majority in the House of Representatives, a two-thirds majority in the Senate is required. Donald Trump was impeached twice while in office, but each time he had enough political support in Congress to avoid actual impeachment.
Republicans are investigating whether Joe Biden was involved in his son’s questionable business dealings.
(Photo: Reuters)
In plain language: It is almost impossible that Biden will be removed from office. However, Republicans have extensive legal powers to investigate the president during impeachment proceedings, including by subpoenaing witnesses and accessing government documents.
This means that even if the Republicans don’t present a “smoking gun” – which it looks like as of now – the issue of Hunter Biden will be in the public eye for months. This is additional ballast for Biden, who is struggling with moderate poll numbers and is running for re-election.
The first reaction showed how much pressure the White House is under. Most recently, Biden’s government headquarters publicly ignored the investigations in the House of Representatives, following the motto: We concentrate on factual policy while the Republicans cause chaos. But now a White House spokesman said the impeachment efforts were “extreme politics at its worst.”
What is the Biden family accused of?
President’s son Hunter Biden has played a central role in the party-political battles in the USA for years. Some Republicans accuse Hunter Biden of actually having to go to prison, among other things because of his previous work on the board of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma. Hunter Biden is said to have received around $1.5 million from Burisma for his work, while his father, as vice president, oversaw Barack Obama’s administration’s policies in Ukraine. A failed joint venture between Hunter Biden and Chinese tycoon Ye Jianming is also repeatedly the subject of headlines.
The Republicans are specifically investigating whether Joe Biden, as vice president, was involved in the transactions and could have given his son advantages. According to the allegations, Hunter Biden is said to have, among other things, arranged a meeting of Ukrainian business partners with his father when he was vice president.
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There is also a federal indictment by the US Department of Justice against Hunter Biden. In the summer, the president’s son was indicted for failing to pay income taxes on time and buying a gun while addicted to drugs. Hunter Biden has pleaded guilty to this. In the meantime, it looked as if he would be spared a criminal trial and probably also a prison sentence because of an agreement with the Ministry of Justice, a so-called plea deal. A judge’s decision on this is still pending.
The US Republicans accuse the Bidens that Hunter Biden is receiving special treatment before the judiciary – and that Donald Trump, who has now been indicted on four counts, is being unlawfully prosecuted.
So far, Republicans have provided no evidence of wrongdoing by the president. But the ongoing hustle and bustle surrounding his son could make Biden more politically vulnerable and is now putting the controversy surrounding Hunter Biden at the center of the election campaign.
Why can impeachment have economic consequences?
McCarthy has been pressured for weeks by members of the right wing to initiate impeachment proceedings. They are led by Congressman Matt Gaetz of Florida, a close Trump ally. Gaetz was one of the Republicans who repeatedly failed McCarthy in the speaker election in January, shining a spotlight on the political instability in Washington. The hardliners around Gaetz have threatened to remove McCarthy if he does not initiate impeachment proceedings against Biden.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives is currently under enormous pressure.
(Photo: AP)
McCarthy is under pressure on several fronts. He is currently trying to push a series of budget bills through the House of Representatives that must be passed by Congress by the end of September. Otherwise there is a risk of a standstill in the US government, a so-called shutdown. McCarthy’s move to support impeachment after much hesitation shows that he seems to urgently need to secure the favor of the right-wing Republicans in the House of Representatives. That, in turn, could anger moderate Republicans who believe impeachment was the wrong decision.
The impeachment question is now driving a new wedge through the already divided Republicans and shows how unpredictable the US center of power has become. In the worst case, Congress will be unable to act in the budget talks. If a shutdown occurs, parts of the US government will have to close. Tens of thousands of government officials are taking a forced break and certain state services are being put on hold. That would not be good news for the US economy, which is struggling with recession fears.
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