House Republicans subpoenaed Hunter Biden and his uncle James Biden to appear for depositions before the House Oversight Committee, Chairman James Comer (R., Ky.) said Wednesday.
The subpoenas mark a significant escalation of the GOP's year-and-a-half-long investigation into the Biden family and signal that the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden is entering its final stages. Financial records obtained by Comer's committee show that Hunter Biden and his associates formed more than 20 shell companies and received over $24 million from foreign countries including China, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, and Kazakhstan, much of which was received during Joe Biden's vice presidency. Of those funds, at least $240,000 landed in Joe Biden's personal bank account as "loan repayments" from his brother, James Biden, and sister-in-law, Sara Biden, Comer revealed in recent weeks.
"The House Oversight Committee has followed the money and built a record of evidence revealing how Joe Biden knew, was involved, and benefited from his family's influence peddling schemes. Now, the House Oversight Committee is going to bring in members of the Biden family and their associates to question them on this record of evidence," Comer said in a statement.
James Biden's deposition before the House Oversight Committee is scheduled for Dec. 6, and Hunter Biden's deposition will follow a week later on Dec. 13, according to records obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
Comer also subpoenaed Rob Walker, a longtime Biden family associate who told the FBI in December 2020 that Joe Biden attended a meeting with executives from CEFC China Energy, a Chinese energy conglomerate with ties to the Chinese Communist Party that paid Hunter Biden at least $5 million in August 2017 to help scout business opportunities.
"Unlike the many lies President Biden told the American people about his family's business schemes, bank records don't lie," Comer said. "These records reveal how the Bidens sold Joe Biden around to the world to benefit the Biden family, including Joe Biden himself, to the detriment of U.S. interests."
In addition to the subpoenas, Comer will also request former Hunter Biden business partner Tony Bobulinski appear for a transcribed interview. Bobulinski revealed before the 2020 election that he met with Joe and Hunter Biden to discuss the CEFC China Energy business deal, but Hunter's attorney alleged in a letter Friday to federal prosecutors that Bobulinski lied about the situation during an October 2020 interview with the FBI.
Bobulinski told the Free Beacon that Hunter Biden was "trying to weaponize" the Justice Department and offered to testify to Congress under oath about his dealings with the Biden family.
Comer also plans to request Sara Biden and several other members of the Biden family to appear before his committee for transcribed interviews. Sara Biden signed a $40,000 loan repayment check to Joe Biden in September 2017. Comer alleged that the funds originated from CEFC China Energy's $5 million payment to Hunter Biden the month prior.
Hunter Biden's sister-in-law and former lover, Hallie Biden, will also receive a request from Comer to appear for a transcribed interview. Hallie Biden's finances were intermingled with Hunter's up through at least 2019, text messages from the first son's abandoned laptop show. Hunter Biden claimed he paid over $525,000 worth of Hallie's credit card bills in 2018 alone, he claimed in a Jan. 17, 2019, text message.
Comer will also request Elizabeth Secundy, another former Hunter Biden lover who also happens to be Hallie Biden's sister, to appear for transcribed interviews. Hunter Biden's wife, Melissa Cohen, will also be requested to appear for a transcribed interview.