The House of Representatives voted along party lines on Wednesday to formally authorize an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.
The 221-212 vote signals a significant escalation in the ongoing political battle between Democrats and Republicans, despite lingering concerns from some Republicans about the lack of concrete evidence against the president.
This action marks the latest chapter in the highly partisan atmosphere surrounding the Biden administration and its potential implications for the upcoming 2024 presidential election.
The House Republicans, now on record supporting the impeachment process, aim to scrutinize President Biden’s conduct, focusing on allegations of his involvement in his son’s business dealings. If the House ultimately votes to impeach, the case will proceed to a trial in the Senate, requiring a two-thirds majority vote for conviction and removal from office.
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In response to the House’s action, President Biden issued a rare statement questioning the Republican agenda. He criticized the House Republicans for prioritizing this investigation over addressing more pressing issues facing the nation, suggesting the inquiry is driven by political motives rather than genuine concerns about his conduct.
“Instead of doing anything to help make Americans’ lives better, they are focused on attacking me with lies,” the president said following the vote. “Instead of doing their job on the urgent work that needs to be done, they are choosing to waste time on this baseless political stunt that even Republicans in Congress admit is not supported by facts.”
Authorizing the monthslong inquiry ensures that the impeachment investigation extends well into 2024, when Biden will be running for reelection and seems likely to be squaring off against former President Donald Trump — who was twice impeached during his time in the White House. Trump has pushed his GOP allies in Congress to move swiftly on impeaching Biden, part of his broader calls for vengeance and retribution against his political enemies.
The decision to hold a vote came as Speaker Mike Johnson and his team faced growing pressure to show progress in what has become a nearly yearlong probe centered around the business dealings of Biden’s family members. While their investigation has raised ethical questions, no evidence has emerged that Biden acted corruptly or accepted bribes in his current role or previous office as vice president.
“We do not take this responsibility lightly and will not prejudge the investigation’s outcome,” Speaker Mike Johnson and his leadership team said in a joint statement after the vote. “But the evidentiary record is impossible to ignore.”
House Democrats stood in united opposition to the inquiry resolution Wednesday, calling it a farce perpetrated by those across the aisle to avenge the two impeachments against Trump.
“This whole thing is an extreme political stunt. It has no credibility, no legitimacy, and no integrity. It is a sideshow,” Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said during a floor debate.
Some House Republicans, particularly those hailing from politically divided districts, had been hesitant in recent weeks to take any vote on Biden’s impeachment, fearing a significant political cost. But GOP leaders have made the case in recent weeks that the resolution is only a step in the process, not a decision to impeach Biden. That message seems to have won over skeptics.