Republican-led US House votes to open impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden

President Joe Biden calls the move a ‘baseless political stunt that even Republicans in Congress admit is not supported by facts’

Members of Congress have been looking into the activities of Biden’s son Hunter, who previously had business dealings in China and Ukraine

Reading Time:3 minutes

US House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, has pushed for a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. Photo: AP

Published: 7:17am, 14 Dec 2023Updated: 9:46am, 14 Dec 2023

The US House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to launch an impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden, a process that promises to deepen Washington’s political divide going into an election year in which Biden’s presumptive opponent, former president Donald Trump, will be tied up in legal proceedings.

The House voted 221 to 212, along party lines, to open the inquiry, which will authorise subpoenas already issued by Republicans and new ones, and allow three Republican-led panels already investigating Biden to hire outside counsel for assistance.

Before the vote, House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, called the resolution “the next necessary step” in a process that was set in motion by his predecessor, outgoing Congressman Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California.

Johnson said in a Fox News interview that with the resolution, “we’ll be in the best position to do our constitutional responsibility”.

With alleged corruption related to activities of the president’s son Hunter at the centre of the inquiry, the younger Biden’s dealings with Chinese and Ukrainian entities may come under renewed scrutiny.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x