House Speaker Kevin McCarthy set social media on fire Thursday after he pushed back against a reporter’s claim that he launched an impeachment inquiry “without evidence.”
“AP reports McCarthy impeachment probe launched ‘without evidence,'” GOP operative Arthur Schwartz posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday. “Here’s McCarthy forcing an AP reporter to admit there’s plenty of evidence to support an impeachment inquiry.”
In the clip, AP reporter Farnoush Amiri asked McCarthy about fellow Republicans who said the investigation into President Biden has yet to reveal an impeachable offense at this point.
“Is that an assessment you share?” asked Amiri.
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House Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks to reporters Thursday. (C-Span)
“You know, an impeachment inquiry is not an impeachment,” McCarthy responded, “What an impeachment inquiry is to do is to get answers to questions. Are you concerned about all the stuff that was recently learned?”
McCarthy then went through a list of instances that many are describing as possible evidence of wrongdoing on the part of the president.
“Do you believe the president lied to the American public when he said he never talked to his son about his businesses?” McCarthy asked “Yes or no?”
“I can’t answer that,” Amiri answered.
“Did you believe when they said the president had a conference call? Do you believe that happened?” asked McCarthy.
“That’s what the testimony says,” Amiri replied.
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President Biden, right, and his son Hunter Biden. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
“Can you believe the president went to Cafe Milano and had dinner with Hunter Biden’s clients, believing he got those clients because he was selling the brand?”
“That’s what the testimony said,” Amiri replied.
“Do you believe Hunter Biden, when you saw the video of him driving a Porsche, that he got $143,000 to buy that Porsche the next day? Do you believe that $3 million from a Russian oligarch was transferred to shell companies that the Biden’s controlled after the dinner took place from Cafe Milano?” asked McCarthy.
McCarthy then asked Amiri again if he believed the president lied, to which he replied, “But is lying an impeachable offense?”
“All I’m saying is I want to know the answer to these questions,” McCarthy said. “The American public wants to know.”
The clip was immediately picked up by conservatives on social media who criticized the narrative from many on the left who say there is no evidence of wrongdoing related to President Biden and his family.
“This is what happens when reporters follow White House orders to engage as activists in the Republican inquiry rather than as unbiased fact-finding journalists,” GOP strategist Matt Whitlock answer X.
“It’s on days like today that we see what left-wing foundations the Associated Press is getting for their money,” former Ted Cruz spokesman Steve Guest posted online.
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Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) speaks to reporters as he leaves a Republican caucus meeting at the US Capitol Building on Sept. 13, 2023 in Washington, DC (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“‘Lying is an impeachable offense,'” The Spectator Editor Stephen L. Miller posted on X. “Oh you sweet summer child…”
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for The Associated Press said, “The Associated Press stands by reporter Farnoush Amiri, an established and respected journalist covering the US Congress.”
McCarthy officially moved forward for an impeachment inquiry on Tuesday after saying House Republicans “discovered serious and credible allegations of President Biden’s conduct.”
“Today, I am directing our House committees to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe,” McCarthy announced in a statement at the Capitol. “This logical next step will give our committees full power to gather all the facts and answers for the American public.”
