Speaker Johnson ‘too busy’ to do a deep dive on Biden impeachment inquiry evidence

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va — House Speaker Mike Johnson said Wednesday he hasn’t taken the time to do a “deep dive” into evidence compiled by House Republicans in their probe of President Biden, though he said what he has seen is “alarming” and shows “unprecedented corruption.”

The Louisiana Republican’s comments Wednesday to reporters at the annual GOP issues conference at Greenbrier Resort came as the GOP-led probe has come under higher scrutiny from critics who contend House lawmakers have no evidence of high crimes or misdemeanors after a monthslong investigation of the president.

Even some Republicans say investigators on the House Oversight and Accountability, Judiciary and Ways and Means committees lack the evidence necessary to move ahead with a formal impeachment.

Mr. Johnson earned a reputation in the House as a go-to source for impeachment knowledge when he served on former President Donald Trump’s impeachment defense team. But the speaker, who inherited the Biden inquiry from his predecessor, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, revealed that he has not had the time to look at the evidence. 

“Because I’ve been so busy with all my other responsibilities. I have not been able to take the time to do the deep dive in the evidence,” Mr. Johnson said. “What has been uncovered is alarming.”

Mr. McCarthy launched the inquiry into Mr. Biden in September. Investigators have yet to move ahead with a formal impeachment against the president in the nearly six months that have followed, despite claiming they have mountains of evidence alleging that Mr. Biden aided and benefited from his son Hunter Biden’s business dealings.  

Mr. Johnson argued that the long-running investigation is how “it’s supposed to look” compared to the pair of so-called snap impeachments that Democrats carried out against Mr. Trump.

“Does it reach the high crimes, treason, high crimes and misdemeanors standard? Everyone will have to make that evaluation when we pull all the evidence together and when we evaluate that,” Mr. Johnson said. “But clearly, this is an unprecedented level of corruption in my view, from any White House that we’ve ever seen.”