To say things have gone south for President Biden may be the understatement of the year. On top of fighting off charges that he is too old and unfit for another term in the White House, too out of touch with young Black and Hispanic voters, and incapable of dealing with a plummeting economy, the president is also dealing with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. On Tuesday, McCarthy announced the launch of an impeachment inquiry over Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings.
Many Democratic leaders were stunned by the announcement, and even some GOP leaders were baffled, several insisting that there was not enough evidence to proceed.
The announcement comes in the wake of House Republicans having spent a year investigating Hunter Biden contending that the president profited off his son’s dealings, mainly during the time when Biden was vice president. To date, there has been no conclusive evidence of wrongdoing by Biden.
McCarthy said that House investigations have uncovered “a culture of corruption” in the Biden family and that demands a deeper review. “These are allegations of abuse of power, obstruction, and corruption,” he said.
While the House has the power to impeach the president, only the Senate has the ability to convict and no president has ever been relieved of duty by an impeachment.
What remains in question is whether McCarthy has enough votes to approve an impeachment resolution. Some Republicans are skeptical and fearful the process could backfire, something the Biden administration has said in response to the possible impeachment.
Even so, the threat of impeachment proceedings must be a troubling ordeal for Biden who, more than a year away from the presidential election, has spurred his campaign to action—including a huge amount of money and resources into advertisement.