LETTER FROM WASHINGTON

Hunt the hunter. Hunter Biden's surprise appearance before the press on Wednesday, December 13, in front of the Capitol in DC reflected the son of the president of the United States's new strategy: To stop allowing himself to be trampled on without a response. "For six years, I have been the target of the unrelenting Trump attack machine, shouting, ‘Where's Hunter?'" Well, here's my answer: I am here...I am here to testify at a public hearing today."

The word "public" is important. That morning, Hunter Biden refused to appear behind closed doors before the elected members of the House of Representatives, who are investigating his past financial dealings when his father was serving as Barack Obama's vice president from 2009-2017. Even before commencing the proceedings, the Republicans were already accusing Hunter Biden of enriching himself through his father's contacts and interventions in contracts in Ukraine and China.

"Let me state as clearly as I can: My father was not financially involved in my business," insisted Hunter Biden. After three years in the shadows, he has decided to take the offensive in front of microphones and the courts to defend his honor and his family. According to Politico, some of the president's allies welcome his move, taking a page from Donald Trump's playbook, arguing "It pays to talk loud, move fast and punch hard." White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre refused to weigh in on Hunter Biden's media appearance on Capitol Hill. Calling him a "private citizen," she acknowledged that Joe Biden was "certainly aware" of the remarks his son planned to make there.

The Republicans, for their part, intend to double down on their investigations. They want to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress. But this is only a pretext: on the same day, December 13, the House majority voted to open an impeachment inquiry against the Democratic president. The Republicans bypassed this formal step and already began their work without this prerequisite 11 months ago.

Eagerness

There is good reason for this eagerness. Many moderates grimaced at the mention of this political destabilization effort, whose failure is a foregone conclusion with zero chance of success. The Democrats hold a majority in the Senate, whose members are constitutionally responsible for conducting any impeachment proceedings based on the impeachment vote in the House. But the imminent start of an election year has prompted members of the Grand Old Party to forget any reservations they may have. Trump, the front-runner in the Republican primaries for the 2024 presidential election, has been calling for such proceedings against Joe Biden for the past two years, echoing those initiated against him, unsuccessfully, on two occasions.

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