Dec 13, 2023 - Politics & Policy

House votes to authorize GOP's Biden impeachment inquiry

Andrew Solender

President Biden. Photo: Jim Watson/AFP via

The House on Wednesday voted along party lines to officially authorize an impeachment inquiry into President Biden.

Why it matters: The vote, which Republicans hope will bolster them in fights to enforce their subpoenas, comes just hours after Hunter Biden refused to sit for a closed-door deposition.

Republicans are now moving to hold the president's son in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with their subpoena.

Driving the news: The House voted 221-212 to pass a resolution directing the House Oversight, Judiciary and Ways and Means committees to continue investigating "whether sufficient grounds exist ... to impeach Joseph Biden."

Many Biden-district Republicans who remain skeptical of the grounds for impeachment got on board with voting to approve the inquiry as a means for forcing Hunter Biden to comply with his congressional subpoena.

What they're saying: In a statement ahead of the vote, Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said the vote will "strengthen our legal case in the courts as we face obstruction from the White House and witnesses."

"Today's obstruction by Hunter Biden reinforces the need for a formal vote," they added, while announcing plans to begin contempt of Congress proceedings against Hunter Biden.

Zoom out: Even some Senate Republicans said this week that they don't believe there is enough evidence to justify opening an inquiry.

"There hasn't been evidence yet of wrongdoing by President Biden himself," said Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah).

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House votes to authorize GOP's Biden impeachment inquiry

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