House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said in an interview published Friday that the House would have to vote before opening an impeachment inquiry into President Biden.
Why it matters: Such a vote could prove highly charged for some of McCarthy's most vulnerable members, many of whom represent in districts Biden won in 2020.
- Some Republicans have said that congressional investigations into the Biden family's finances have not yet uncovered enough evidence to warrant impeachment.
What he's saying: "If we move forward with an impeachment inquiry, it would occur through a vote on the floor of the People's House and not through a declaration by one person," McCarthy told Breitbart News.
- The House speaker said an impeachment inquiry is a "serious matter" and that Republicans "would not take it lightly or use it for political purposes."
- McCarthy indicated last month that the House could move to launch an impeachment probe into Biden when it returns from its August recess.
The details: The GOP-controlled House has spent the year pursuing a multi-pronged investigation into the business dealings of Biden's son, Hunter, who is facing federal prosecution.
- Nine months on, the investigations are still searching for conclusive evidence linking the president to his son's ventures.
- McCarthy has suggested an impeachment inquiry would be geared towards giving the House stronger tools to pursue its investigation.
The other side: The White House has seized on a vow by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to vote against government funding unless Congress first initiates an impeachment inquiry.
- "If Speaker McCarthy proceeds to an impeachment ... as a condition for or distraction from far-right GOP efforts to shut down the government, it will prove once and for all this is a baseless, politically-motivated exercise," spokesperson Ian Sams said in a statement on Friday.