The White House is cajoling media outlets to be more skeptical of the House GOP impeachment inquiry into President Biden, dispatching a memo Wednesday that points to Republicans who are skeptical of the effort.
The unusual memo was written by Ian Sams, a spokesman for investigations at the White House, and addressed to the leadership of news organizations one day after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy directed Republican-led committees to open the inquiry.
Mr. Sams’ memo lists quotes from Republicans who say they haven’t seen evidence that foreign business deals led by Mr. Biden’s son, Hunter, amounted to corruption or put money in the president’s pocket.
“It’s time for the media to ramp up its scrutiny of House Republicans for opening an impeachment inquiry based on lies,” Mr. Sams wrote. “When even House Republican members are admitting that there is simply no evidence that Joe Biden did anything wrong, much less impeachable, that should set off alarm bells for news organizations.”
Mr. McCarthy cited evidence uncovered by the House Oversight and Accountability Committee documenting millions of dollars flowing into Biden family bank accounts. He said testimony shows that then-Vice President Biden served as the “brand” that Hunter Biden and associates used to lock in lucrative deals with China, Ukraine, Russia and other countries.
“House Republicans have uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Biden’s conduct. Taken together, these allegations paint a picture of a culture of corruption,” said Mr. McCarthy, California Republican.
The speaker said there were “allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption.”
“They warrant further investigation by the House of Representatives. That’s why today I am directing our House committees to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden,” he said.
It will be the third presidential impeachment inquiry in less than four years. It also will thrust the House into what is likely to be an all-consuming impeachment investigation as Democrats and Republicans battle over government spending ahead of a Sept. 30 deadline.
The White House memo noted that Mr. McCarthy had insisted on a House vote to open an inquiry into President Donald Trump but skipped holding a vote on his own inquiry for Mr. Biden.
Mr. Sams said that is a sign that Republicans are hurtling forward based on flimsy evidence.
“Covering impeachment as a process story — Republicans say X, but the White House says Y — is a disservice to the American public who relies on the independent press to hold those in power accountable,” the memo says. “And in the modern media environment, where every day liars and hucksters peddle disinformation and lies everywhere from Facebook to Fox, process stories that fail to unpack the illegitimacy of the claims on which House Republicans are basing all their actions only serve to generate confusion, put false premises in people’s feeds, and obscure the truth.”
CNN reports the memo was sent to executives at their network and other major organizations, including The New York Times, Fox News, The Associated Press and CBS News.
• Susan Ferrechio and Kerry Picket contributed to this report.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.