Hunter Biden leaves House in dark over testimony about business deals

President Biden‘s troubled son Hunter Biden is in Washington but House investigators say they remain in the dark over whether he will show up for a deposition about his father’s involvement in his business deals. 

Republican lawmakers conducting an impeachment inquiry into whether President Biden engaged in influence-peddling scheduled a closed-door deposition with his son on Wednesday morning, ordering him to appear under subpoena. 

The committee room is ready to record the deposition, but the younger Mr. Biden may not show up at all. 

“We don’t know what’s going to happen,” a source close to the investigation told The Washington Times. 

Hunter Biden will be in the city on Wednesday, CNN reported Tuesday. He has not agreed to testify, however, and has instead offered, through his lawyer Abbe Lowell, to answer congressional questions at a public hearing. 

Republicans rejected the offer earlier this month and said the president’s son is compelled to appear for the closed-door deposition, where he’ll face more intense scrutiny by committee lawyers than by lawmakers in a public setting. Mr. Lowell has raised concerns the committee could selectively leak the closed-door testimony to harm his client.

Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, Kentucky Republican, and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, Ohio Republican, threatened to hold the president’s son in contempt of Congress if he fails to show up. 

“Chairmen Comer and Jordan have been clear: Hunter Biden must appear for his deposition or the committee will begin contempt of Congress proceedings,” a committee aide told The Times.

The battle over Hunter Biden’s appearance comes ahead of a House vote Wednesday to formally open an impeachment inquiry into Mr. Biden. House investigators have been conducting an informal impeachment probe for several weeks, which has yielded bank records and witness testimony Republicans believe show Mr. Biden’s involvement in the lucrative deals cut by his son and other relatives.

If he shows up for the deposition, Hunter Biden could decline to answer questions under his constitutional right protecting him from self-incrimination.

The president’s son was charged in federal court in California last week with tax evasion and filing false tax returns between 2016 and 2020.

 The nine counts against him come with a maximum sentence of 17 years in prison and he could face additional charges. Special counsel David Weiss, who has been in charge of the case, said the investigation remains open.