An attorney for Hunter Biden reiterated to House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) that the president’s son would not be sitting for a closed-door deposition and re-upped his offer to testify in a public hearing.
The new letter to Congress follows a subpoena by Comer demanding that Hunter Biden sit for a closed-door deposition as part of their impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. In an earlier letter to the committee, Abbe Lowell, Hunter Biden’s attorney, rebuffed this request, saying their client would only sit for a public hearing before the committee, not a deposition.
POWER OF THE PEN: BIDEN ISSUES TWO MORE VETO THREATS
"He is making this choice because the Committee has demonstrated time and again it uses closed-door sessions to manipulate, even distort, the facts and misinform the American public — a hearing would ensure transparency and truth in these proceedings," Lowell wrote.
In a public hearing, members from both parties of the committee each have five minutes to question a witness in an open setting. In a deposition, each party has representatives take alternating hours to question a witness behind closed doors. The media and public cannot watch depositions, but they are transcribed, and sometimes their transcripts are later made public.
In the letter, Lowell used Comer’s past public statements as the reason for why they came to this decision.
Lowell cites statements he made on a conservative podcast on Oct. 31, “We’re in the downhill phase of this investigation now because we have so many documents, and we can bring these people in for depositions or committee hearings, whichever they choose.”
He also cited a statement Comer made on Newsmax on Sept. 13, “Hunter Biden is more than welcome to come in front of the committee . . . he’s invited today. We will drop everything.” Comer sent Lowell a letter on Nov. 8: "Given your client’s willingness to address this investigation publicly up to this point, we would expect him to be willing to testify before Congress.”
After Lowell’s first letter stating that Hunter Biden wouldn’t sit for a closed-door deposition, Comer, in another letter, welcomed a public hearing but said he would only allow it after Hunter Biden sat for a deposition.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“He doesn’t get to make the rules,” Comer said of Hunter Biden while talking to reporters. “You're talking about a white guy from an influential family that has told the IRS, the FBI, and the DOJ to go fly a kite. He's not going to tell the House Oversight Committee that. He will have the deposition and then the public hearing; that's the way.”
A spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee did not respond to a request for comment on this letter.