Under pressure

After weeks of signaling a possible impeachment inquiry, McCarthy endorsed the move Tuesday, saying House Republicans have gathered enough information to warrant more investigation."These allegations paint a picture of a culture of corruption,” he said.
What are the allegations? In his remarks, McCarthy cited Biden, in his capacity as vice president, being on certain phone calls and in dinners involving Hunter and his business partners. The speaker also said Biden lied about whether he knew of Hunter’s dealings and that he gave his son “special treatment” in the criminal tax investigation against him. McCarthy also said that the family made millions from overseas firms.
But. These instances do not directly link the president to Hunter and his actions. Despite GOP allegations that seek to tie Biden to his son’s business dealings, House Republicans have not produced evidence of “high crimes and misdemeanors,” as outlined in the U.S. Constitution, or that show the president took any official action.
Who is leading the inquiry? McCarthy appointed the chairs of the House Judiciary, Oversight and Ways and Means committees to lead the inquiry. These three committees have already launched their own Biden family probes this year, and joined forces to look more closely at how the Justice Department handled its investigation of Hunter’s tax and foreign business dealings. They obtained financial records through subpoenas and also pointed to whistleblower testimony that suggested federal officials slow-walked their investigation, but have not substantiated that Biden participated in his son’s work.
The White House has repeatedly said the president was not involved with his son’s business dealings. Spokesperson Ian Sams said on X, formally known as Twitter, that McCarthy’s step was “extreme politics at its worst.”
Also. Days ago, CNN reported that a newly released memo from the House Oversight Committee said it didn’t need to find direct payments to Biden to accuse the president of corruption, effectively widening the goal posts for their investigation.
A quick point. NPR’s Steve Inskeep noted that McCarthy repeatedly referred to “Biden’s family” — and not Biden — in his statement.

What happens now? As McCarthy himself has repeatedly said to fellow members and reporters before Tuesday’s announcement: Opening an impeachment inquiry into Biden is not the same as voting for articles of impeachment, which comes further into the process.

What about the House vote? McCarthy previously said he would not open an impeachment inquiry without a full House vote. That hadn’t happened as of this writing, and it’s unclear at this juncture whether a vote could still happen.
A quick process note. While a House vote could formalize an inquiry, it’s not required in the Constitution. If Republicans decide after today that there’s enough evidence to move forward, then the Judiciary Committee would mark up articles of impeachment. Those articles would need to be voted out of the committee, and the House would need a majority to approve them and formally impeach. Remember: The House has the power to impeach an official for possible wrongdoing, but the Senate only has the power to convict or remove someone from office.
Not everyone is sold on impeaching Biden. Before Tuesday, multiple rank-and-file Republicans were unsure about whether to launch a formal inquiry into Biden. Some said there wasn’t enough evidence to take that step.
For some, the aim seems to be more information. Sen. Thom Tillis said the move is about “doing our homework.” But, the North Carolina Republican added: "I don't think that it's going to result in a removal on the Senate side, but if there's meaningful information that they think the American people need to know about, I'm OK with it."
The latest on Hunter. Beyond the congressional probes, a plea deal on tax and gun charges recently fell apart in the Justice Department investigation into Hunter. Now, federal prosecutors may seek a new indictment by the end of September.
What Biden has said. As of this writing, Biden has yet to directly address today’s news. When asked about the ongoing investigations into him and his family, the president told Judy Woodruff in February: “Public's not going to pay attention to that. They want these guys to do something. If the only thing they can do is make up things about my family, it’s not going to go very far.”
A 2024 strategy. The GOP-led emphasis on Biden alleged wrongdoing is part of a strategy to shift attention away from his most likely opponent in the 2024 — former President Donald Trump, who was impeached twice and has been indicted four times since leaving office. He faces additional civil lawsuits, too.
For this week. McCarthy is expected to have a few closed-door discussions with lawmakers about next steps.
For the near future. McCarthy said Tuesday that this initial step will be to expand the committee’s ability to investigate the president for financial wrongdoing or corruption. “We will go wherever the evidence takes us,” he said. McCarthy did not take questions after delivering his statement.

The pressure on McCarthy is mounting. For weeks now, far-right members of the House Republican conference have been pushing McCarthy to open a formal impeachment inquiry into Biden as part of any deal to fund the government (more on the looming shutdown below).

McCarthy’s power. A far-right flank has said McCarthy hasn’t followed through on his promises when they ultimately elected him as speaker in January after 15 rounds of voting.
The threat of ouster. Not long after McCarthy announced the inquiry, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla. — who has openly called for McCarthy’s ouster — criticized the move as a “baby step,” adding that, “We must move faster.” (That’s a thought that seems to be percolating in the minds of other House GOP lawmakers.)