House Republicans to consider holding Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress

Republicans on the US House oversight committee will on Wednesday consider a resolution to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress over his refusal to comply with a subpoena for testimony.

The personal struggles and legal travails of Joe Biden’s surviving son are well-known. Republicans are targeting him as part of attempts to portray his father as corrupt and therefore secure his impeachment, as an expected election rematch with Donald Trump looms.

In early December, Hunter Biden, 53, defied a subpoena for testimony to be delivered in private, instead appearing in public on Capitol Hill.

“Republicans do not want an open process where Americans can see their tactics, expose their baseless inquiry, or hear what I have to say,” Biden told reporters. “What are they afraid of? I am here.”

On Monday, James Comer of Kentucky, the Republican oversight chair, and Jim Jordan of Ohio, the chair of the House judiciary committee, released their contempt resolution and an attendant report.

They said: “Hunter Biden’s willful refusal to comply with our subpoenas constitutes contempt of Congress and warrants referral to the appropriate United States attorney’s office for prosecution.”

Contempt of Congress is a misdemeanour criminal offence. As described by the Congressional Research Service, “a witness suffers no direct legal consequence from House or Senate approval of a contempt citation, though a variety of political consequences may [follow].

“If the individual is prosecuted and convicted, violations … are punishable by a fine of up to $100,000 and imprisonment ‘for not less than one month nor more than 12 months’.”

Hunter Biden is already in extensive legal jeopardy. In September, he was indicted in Delaware on three federal charges