House Speaker Mike Johnson claims Biden impeachment inquiry is IMMINENT: GOP has the votes for ‘necessary step’ to probe Joe’s ties to Hunter’s business deals after being ‘stonewalled by the White House’

Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson has claimed that the impeachment inquiry against President Biden is now imminent.

Speaking on Fox News, the newly elected chairman told the newspaper that the move to launch a formal vote on the impeachment inquiry against Biden was the “necessary step.”

Johnson, who appeared on Fox alongside House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, said the investigation would not be used as a partisan political tool.

Louisiana's representative said: “A formal vote on the impeachment inquiry in the House will allow us to take the next necessary step and I think this is something we need to do at this time.

'It has become a necessary step. Elise and I both served on Donald Trump's impeachment defense team twice, when Democrats used it for blatantly partisan political purposes. We have disapproved of that use. This is very different.'

Johnson also added that he believes Republicans now have the votes needed to launch the investigation, saying, “I believe we will do that.” I suspect no Democrats will help with this, but they should.”

He continued: “Our three jurisdictional committees – Judiciary, Oversight, Ways and Means – have done an extraordinary job of following the evidence where it leads.

“Now we're being stopped by the White House as they prevent at least two to three DOJ witnesses from coming forward as former White House counsel, the National Archives, the White House has withheld thousands of pages of evidence.”

Johnson added that Republicans “have an obligation to do this” and “we cannot stop the process.”

This was said by a spokesperson for White House counsel Ian Sams CNN in a statement: “This is a baseless, politically motivated attempt to smear President Biden with lies, and it reflects how this chaotic Republican Party in the House of Representatives is focusing on the wrong priorities when they should be working on real issues that matter.” Americans actually care about it, like the President.”

Republicans in the House of Representatives have been pushing to formalize their impeachment inquiry against President Biden, but have not yet received the necessary number of votes to do so.

The investigation was declared open in September by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who accused Biden of being involved in a “culture of corruption.”

McCarthy said at the time, “Republicans in the House of Representatives have uncovered serious and credible allegations about President Biden's conduct.”

McCarthy was under intense pressure from the party's conservative wing to take such a step, including threats to impeach him.

Earlier this week, GOP Majority Whip Tom Emmer told members in a closed-door meeting that a vote on opening the investigation could come in the coming weeks.

Returning with a vote to authorize the investigation signals that the House is far from an actual vote on impeaching the president.

Last month, Johnson said the House was nearing a decision on whether to vote on articles of impeachment — the final step in the process — and not on an investigation.

“I do believe we will make a decision on it very soon,” he said on November 2.

Republican leaders have long insisted that no vote is needed to approve the investigation — in part to avoid putting swing district members in a difficult position.

Holding a vote on the impeachment inquiry would be a risky move by Republican leaders in the House of Representatives, who have not yet secured sufficient support for the investigation in their narrow 221-213 majority.

With Democrats united against impeachment, Republican leaders would need near-unanimous support on their part for the vote to pass.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy suggested in an interview with DailyMail.com on Tuesday that the investigation is not over. “We haven't finished doing all the research yet,” he said. “It might take a little more time.”

Johnson, meanwhile, said the evidence already gathered by the Republican chairmen of the Oversight, Ways and Means and Judiciary committees is “alarming,” even as he warned against a hasty ruling.

“While we take no pleasure in what is going on here, we do have a responsibility to do it,” Johnson said at a news conference on Wednesday.

He defended the impeachment inquiry, claiming it was very different from the two impeachments against Trump, which he defended during the trial.

Johnson said Republican efforts against Biden are “the exact opposite” of Trump's impeachment and that Republicans stand for the “rule of law.”

House Republicans have now set up a new impeachment website to detail the evidence they say they have found against the president.

Meanwhile, the House Oversight Committee has gone back and forth with the Biden family after subpoenaing Hunter and James Biden for testimony.

Hunter's attorneys offered to testify every day in December, as long as it was done with the doors open.

But Chairman James Comer stressed that Hunter must first make a statement behind closed doors before giving televised testimony to the committee.

Hunter is currently facing gun charges brought by Special Prosecutor David Weiss, to which he has pleaded not guilty.

But additional tax levies could also be imposed, and anything Hunter Biden testified about at a Congressional hearing would be admissible in the criminal trial.