The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Thursday to begin a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. The vote was 221-212, with all Republicans voting in favor and all Democrats voting against.
The vote authorizes three congressional committees to continue their investigations into whether there is sufficient evidence to impeach Biden.
In a statement after the vote, Biden accused Republicans of “politicizing” the impeachment inquiry. He said they were “more interested in scoring political points than in doing their jobs.”
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who led the effort to impeach Biden, defended the inquiry as a “legal and constitutional exercise.” He said the committees needed the authority to subpoena witnesses and documents to get to the truth.
The impeachment inquiry is likely to be a major focus of the 2024 presidential election. Republicans are hoping to use it to energize their base and damage Biden’s approval ratings.
Despite the fact that impeachment efforts will not ultimately result in an official removal of Biden from office by Congress, just as it happened during the impeachment proceedings against former President Donald Trump, shedding light on these proceedings during an election season will provide Republicans with an effective electoral tool to attract voters.
This is what Republican Representative Don Bacon alluded to when he ruled out an official impeachment but stated, “More importantly, this information should be available during the elections so that voters can decide for themselves. I don’t believe we will prove a crime or misdemeanor, but voters deserve to know what the Biden family has done.”
