Two Republican-led House committees announced on Thursday that Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, will appear for a closed-door deposition on February 28 as part of their impeachment inquiry efforts into his father, NBC News reported.
"Hunter Biden will appear before our committees for a deposition on February 28, 2024. His deposition will come after several interviews with Biden family members and associates," said Reps. James Comer and Jim Jordan in a statement. "We look forward to Hunter Biden’s testimony.”
Comer (R-KY) serves as the chairman of the Oversight and Accountability Committee, while Jordan (R-OH) is the chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
The two Republicans added that their committees are working with the attorney for the president's brother, James Biden, to schedule his appearance as well.
Last week, the two committees voted to approve a report recommending a contempt of Congress resolution against Hunter Biden for his failure to comply with a subpoena. That process was paused by the House this week.
The President's son had previously said he would be willing to testify at a public hearing, an offer Republicans had shot down, arguing they wanted him to appear for a closed-door deposition. After he defied the subpoena for closed-door testimony, Biden instead appeared outside the Capitol for a press conference in December.
The allegations at the core of the Republican-led investigation stem from claims that the president was involved in or financially benefited from his son’s foreign business dealings, making the president’s son a crucial witness for their probe.
Last month, the GOP-controlled House of Representatives voted to authorize its impeachment inquiry into President Biden. The 221-212 vote was along party lines.
Then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was the first to announce that House Republicans would launch an impeachment inquiry against President Biden over “allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption" in his involvement with the foreign business dealings of his son.
Hunter Biden was charged last month with nine counts, including failure to file and pay taxes; evasion of assessment; and false or fraudulent tax return.
He was also charged in September with three counts related to lying on a federal form to acquire a Colt Cobra handgun in 2018 and for being an illegal drug user in possession of the gun.
Several weeks later, he pleaded not guilty to three federal crimes related to his purchase of a revolver at a Delaware gun shop in 2018. It was the first-ever prosecution by the Justice Department of the child of a sitting president.