On Tuesday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy formally opened an impeachment investigation against President Joe Biden.
Based on their initial response, Democrats appear determined to capitalize on what they perceive to be Republican division.
In fact, White House spokesman Ian Sams noted that McCarthy himself has been among the waverers thus far.
“Maybe someone should ask him: Prior to the midterms, you said ‘the country doesn’t like impeachment used for political purposes’ but now you’re doing just that, as Gaetz threatens your speakership and MTG says she’ll shutdown the government unless you do impeachment What gives?” Sams posted on Tuesday.
Sams’ tweet included a Washington Post headline from October 2022: “McCarthy Downplays Prospect of Impeaching Biden if GOP wins House.”
Maybe someone should ask him:
Prior to the midterms, you said “the country doesn’t like impeachment used for political purposes” but now you’re doing just that, as Gaetz threatens your speakership and MTG says she’ll shutdown the government unless you do impeachment
What gives? https://t.co/Doc3TFuQZH pic.twitter.com/6nXn6r0mE4
— Ian Sams (@IanSams46) September 12, 2023
After McCarthy announced the impeachment investigation one hour later, Sams resumed his social media offensive.
“House Republicans have been investigating the President for 9 months, and they’ve turned up no evidence of wrongdoing. His own GOP members have said so. He vowed to hold a vote to open impeachment, now he flip flopped because he doesn’t have support, Extreme politics at its worst,” Sams wrote.
House Republicans have been investigating the President for 9 months, and they've turned up no evidence of wrongdoing
His own GOP members have said so
He vowed to hold a vote to open impeachment, now he flip flopped because he doesn't have support
Extreme politics at its worst
— Ian Sams (@IanSams46) September 12, 2023
By “no evidence” Sams must have meant “compelling evidence” linking Biden to his son Hunter’s foreign influence peddling.
Tuesday on X, formerly Twitter, McCarthy identified “serious and credible allegations into President Biden’s conduct — a culture of corruption.”
“Through our investigation we have found that President Biden did lie to the American people about his own knowledge of his family’s foreign business dealings,” McCarthy said at a press conference Tuesday.
I am directing our House committees to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. Over the past several months, House Republicans have uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Biden’s conduct—a culture of corruption. https://t.co/3uoDlUB3Sy
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) September 12, 2023
McCarthy cited eyewitness accounts, bank records, Treasury Department records, and FBI informant information as justifications for the investigation.
Thus, Sams’ posts revealed the Democrats’ only possible strategy in Biden’s defense: highlight the political. Use phrases such as “political purposes” and “extreme politics at its worst.”
Sams even mentioned Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz and Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Undoubtedly, the White House spokesman believed he could portray impeachment as politically radical by doing so.
In fact, the mainstream media frequently labels Gaetz and Greene as “far-right” allies of former President Donald Trump. Sams should have no difficulty convincing the media servants of the Democratic establishment to parrot his accusations of political extremism.
Nonetheless, the strategy appears frantic.
Gaetz and Greene took opposing positions in the Republican dispute over the House speakership earlier this year, for example. Greene supported McCarthy’s candidacy for speaker, while Gaetz opposed him vehemently.
Similarly, emphasizing the “political” aspects of an impeachment distracts from the fundamental issues.
What led Biden to lie? What did he intend to hide? Where do all these financial documents and testimonies lead?
Interestingly, Sams did not insist the president tell the truth. Neither did the spokesperson for the White House insist that the president did nothing improper. Sams simply and falsely asserted that Republicans discovered “no evidence.”
This is the type of statement one makes when the truth is not on his side.
In this case, the only available strategy entails emphasizing political aspects in the hopes of frightening hesitant Republicans into abandoning the investigation. Convince them to prioritize what D.C. insiders may perceive as their political self-interests. Tell them not to make waves.
It cannot operate. If congressional Republicans possess even a grain of integrity, the plan will fail.