WASHINGTON — For months, the White House has accused Republicans of exercising congressional oversight powers to pursue politically motivated attacks on President Joe Biden.
Now the White House says the Republican congressman leading the investigation into the Biden family finances is defending them.
In a new memo first obtained by NBC News, White House spokesman Ian Sams said that MAGA Republicans in the House, led by Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, are «acknowledging» that investigations into the Congress on the Biden family’s finances are an attempt to politically harm the president.
«[E]The extreme MAGA House Republicans are being caught doing something they rarely do: telling the truth,” he said. «They are admitting through their own words and deeds that these so-called ‘investigations’ are not really meant to reveal facts but to damage the president’s political position.»
Comer’s comments linking the investigations to Biden’s polling numbers in a Fox News interview made that explicit, Sams continued.
When asked Monday about the impact of his investigation on Biden’s political position going into 2024, Comer said he had «absolutely» moved the needle.
«There is no doubt,» he said. “You look at the polls, and right now Donald Trump is 7 points ahead of Joe Biden and trending up; Joe Biden’s trend is downward. And I think the media looks around, scratches their heads, and realizes that the American people are keeping up with our investigation.»
Comer has previously argued that his investigation is not politically motivated.
Sams argued that this shows Republican motives.
“Despite previously insisting that his investigation is ‘not political’ and that ‘the only people who see this as a partisan investigation are the media and hardcore Democrats,’ on Monday morning around 4:00 a.m. , Comer took to the airwaves of Fox to boast that his investigations are ‘moving the needle’ not because he has uncovered facts, but because he claimed (falsely, by the way) that President Biden’s polling numbers have a «trend down,» he said.
House Oversight Committee Republicans led by Comer are investigating foreign payments made to Biden family members, including the president’s son Hunter Biden and his brother James.
A memo released earlier this month by Comer argues that the Biden family’s activities in Romania «give clear indications of a plan to sell influence from 2015 to 2017.»
Comer has suggested that Biden may have been unduly influenced by his family’s business ties abroad while serving as vice president. But despite a paper trail for months, the Kentucky Republican has yet to disclose any payments made directly to Biden, before or after he left the Obama White House.
Sams pointed to reports drawing parallels between Comer’s comments and a moment eight years ago when Kevin McCarthy linked the House Republicans’ Benghazi investigation to Hillary Clinton’s polling numbers.
Republicans quickly walked away from the comments, describing the link as a «disappointment.» Shortly thereafter, McCarthy withdrew from the spokesperson race.