As the House Republican impeachment report on President Joe Biden nears completion, some Republican leaders are suggesting a delay in its release as the Democrats are "destroying themselves" with the debate over Biden's reelection bid, according to Representative James Comer.
Over the past several months, House Republicans have investigated President Biden over allegations that he was involved with and benefited from his son Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings. The White House has repeatedly denied that Joe Biden had anything to do with his son's dealings.
In June, the House Oversight Committee, chaired by Comer, announced that they were referring both Hunter Biden and the president's brother, James Biden, for criminal prosecution on accusations that they lied "about key aspects of the impeachment inquiry." Both had previously appeared in closed-door meetings with the committee, denying the president's involvement in their business dealings.
Two weeks on from Joe Biden's widely criticized debate performance against presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump on June 27, some House GOP leaders, including Representative Jason Smith, are pushing to delay the release of the report, according to Punchbowl News.
These leaders reportedly believe holding back the report could give Democrats time to address their candidate issues instead of rallying support for President Biden. Others, like Representative Jim Jordan, say the committees are still compiling information and the report is not ready. The 400-page report has input from three different committees, which has led to several disagreements, according to Punchbowl News.
Jordan, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, told the outlet earlier this week, "You got three committees to work with," adding, "We're still working on it."
Newsweek reached out to Jordan's press secretary for additional comment via email on Thursday.
Kentucky Republican Comer, who has been co-leading the impeachment inquiry, has been an advocate for releasing the report sooner rather than later, but he appeared to note that the current political climate among Democrats may warrant a delay.
Comer recently reiterated his belief that "[Joe Biden] has committed impeachable offenses, there's no question about it," in an interview with Punchbowl News.
In that interview, he also acknowledged House GOP members' discussions about delaying the report's release due to the current state of affairs among the Democratic Party.
Comer said, "The one thing that's being discussed—and I don't think it's a factor—is why would you do anything right now? Napoleon said 'Never invade when the enemy is in the process of destroying themselves.'"
Newsweek reached out to Comer's press director via email on Thursday.
The House Oversight Committee's spokesperson told Newsweek in an email, "the fact that President Biden is declining mentally and Hunter Biden acts as a gatekeeper in the White House shows the need to remove Joe Biden from public office is even more pressing. We will continue to work with the other committees to finalize and release a joint impeachment inquiry report as expeditiously as possible."
The Democratic Party has been in disarray following President Biden's poor debate performance, with the Biden campaign working to solidify support behind his reelection bid while others, including several sitting Democratic House members and Senator Peter Welch, have asked the president to step aside.
Ways and Means Committee Chair, Representative Jason Smith—an advocate of holding the report's release—said, "Just sit back and let the Democrats keep shooting each other," adding, "That's my advice. But we do need to release it at some point."
Newsweek reached out to Smith's communications director for comment via email on Thursday.
Update 7/11/24, 1:55 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include comment from the House Oversight Committee.
About the writer
Mandy Taheri is a Newsweek reporter based in Connecticut and Brooklyn. She joined Newsweek as a reporter in 2024. She ... Read more
