Sen. Chuck Grassley on Hunter Biden’s business dealings: These are ‘legitimate allegations’
Ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, says there is evidence of malfeasance and ‘political bias’ in the FBI’s investigation of Hunter Biden and discusses his reelection bid.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will seek testimony from Hunter Biden and James Biden as part of its oversight duties if the GOP takes control of the Senate and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, holds the gavel as chairman, according to an informed source.
Senators Grassley and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., have been leading an investigation into the potentially criminal business dealings of Hunter Biden and James Biden, the son and brother of President Joe Biden, since 2019. As chairman, Grassley would have the ability to set the agenda for the committee and have subpoena authority.
Hunter Biden is currently under federal investigation for his "tax affairs." Fox News first reported in July that the probe had reached a "critical stage," and that federal prosecutors were weighing charges against Hunter Biden for various tax and foreign lobbying violations, false statements and more.
On Wednesday, Fox News reported that the two senators shared with Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss, currently leading the criminal investigation into Hunter Biden, more than 200 pages of bank records related to the Biden family’s alleged "connections to the Chinese regime and persons connected to its military and intelligence elements."
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, will be sought for testimony by Senate Republicans. (Kevin Lamarque)
The senators accused Weiss and the Justice Department of ignoring their prior attempts to ensure that the criminal probe into Hunter Biden is "thorough and free from political interference."
This would not be the first time the committee will have sought testimony from family members of a sitting president. In 2018, Donald Trump Jr. was brought for a transcribed interview about his meeting in 2016 at Trump Tower.
Sources said Grassley will also be focused on what numerous whistleblowers have alleged to be a "deeply rooted political infection" in the FBI, with a focus on the Washington Field Office and leadership at FBI Headquarters.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa (Photo by SUSAN WALSH/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
FEDS WEIGH CHARGES AGAINST HUNTER BIDEN, OUTCOME OF YEARSLONG CASE COULD BE 'IMMINENT': SOURCE
Consistent with oversight letters Grassley has written to FBI Director Christopher Wray and Attorney General Merrick Garland, Grassley is likely to summon several former and current FBI officials to testify. Those on the list include:
Assistant Special Agent in Charge Timothy Thibault: On July 18, Grassley sent a letter to Garland and Wray saying Thibault may have opened "politically charged investigations" related to the campaign of former President Donald Trump while suppressing key details related to the Hunter Biden probe as "disinformation." On July 23, Thibault resigned from the FBI while under an investigation for a Hatch Act violation. Thibault has denied claims of partisanship and has also said he is willing to testify before Congress on the matter.
Brian Auten, FBI Supervisory Intelligence Analyst: In an August 25 letter, Grassley claimed that in August 2020, Auten played a role in efforts by the FBI to "improperly discredit and falsely claim that derogatory information about Hunter Biden’s activities was disinformation, causing investigative activity – separate and distinct from ongoing criminal probe by U.S. Attorney Weiss – and sourcing to be shut down."
President Biden's son Hunter, and his brother James, are likely to be called to testify in the Senate if Republicans win the majority. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Nikki Floris, FBI Intelligence Analyst in Charge of the WFO Intelligence Division and Bradley Benavides, FBI Deputy Assistant Director of Counterintelligence: Senators Grassley and Johnson on August 25 wrote to Benavides and Floris, claiming that August 2020 they provided the senators with an "unnecessary" briefing alleging that senators were "advancing Russian disinformation" by investigating Hunter Biden’s business dealings. The senators said the briefing was "only done because of pressure from our Democratic colleagues, including Democratic leadership, to falsely attack our Biden investigation as advancing Russian disinformation."
Grassley is up for re-election to an eighth term in the senate on November 8.
Fox News' Brooke Singman and Kelly Laco contributed to this report.
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