House Republicans officially begin contempt of Congress charges against FBI Director Chris Wray for failure to hand over Biden ‘bribery’ document they claim implicated then-Vice President Joe Biden in a $5 ‘criminal’ scheme million with a foreigner.
The escalation comes after Republican and Democratic leaders on the House Oversight Committee were allowed access by the FBI on Monday to review the FD-1023 form in a secure facility at the U.S. Capitol. The document apparently describes an ‘arrangement’ for an exchange of money for policy decisions.
The Republicans issued a subpoena for the FD-1023 form last month, and FBI Director Chris Wray was given a hard May 30 deadline to turn over the unclassified document, which he failed to meet.
After reviewing the document Monday, Comer told reporters that the allegations in the form “suggest a pattern of bribery” consistent with findings the commission has made public.
It’s been called “money laundering,” he said, saying it fits the pattern of more than $1 million in Romanian payments to the Biden family revealed last month.
The House Oversight Committee released a new memo specifically outlining the Biden family’s ties to Romanian “influence peddling” and a web of LLCs while Biden was vice president
In early May, Republicans released a report addressing more than $10 million that Biden family members had received from foreign actors, including previously undisclosed $1 million in Romania-linked payments, and a “web” of 20 companies that had been created while President Joe Biden was Vice President. and boosting anti-corruption efforts abroad.
He also said the FBI file was “undisputed” and is currently being used in an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Delaware Justice Department into Hunter Biden’s finances.
The “confidential human source” is a “trusted, highly credible informant” who has been used by the FBI for more than 10 years and paid more than six figures, Comer continued.
The chairman added that the contempt proceedings will begin next Thursday.
“At the briefing, the FBI again refused to turn over the unclassified file to the House Oversight Committee, and we will now begin contempt of Congress hearings on Thursday.”
Last week, Comer and Senator Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, spoke to Wray by phone and the FBI director offered to help them and Ranking Member Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., to have the documents reviewed at FBI headquarters in an effort to avert the contempt threat.
The FBI confirmed to DailyMail.com last week that it would allow the commission’s leadership to see the document.
On today’s call, Director Wray offered to provide the committee chair and ranking member with an opportunity to securely review information responding to the subpoena to accommodate the committee, while protecting the confidentiality and security of sources. and important investigative sensibilities are protected,” the FBI said in a statement.
“The FBI has consistently demonstrated its commitment to working with the committee to meet its request, from scheduling briefings and phone calls to allowing the chairperson to personally review information. The FBI remains committed to cooperating with the Committee in good faith.”
Comer also informed Wray that he was also narrowing the scope of the subpoena for the document by citing two additional terms that could be referenced in the record: “June 30, 2020” and “five million.”
Raskin denounced the Republicans’ handling of the document in a group of reporters after Monday’s briefing, calling it “secondhand hearsay.”
He said former U.S. Attorney Scott Brady for the Western District of Pennsylvania and then-Attorney General Bill Barr found no reason to escalate the investigation of all “allegations involving Ukraine” based on the FD-1023 form. .
“It just baffles me that my colleagues would want to litigate this in public let alone despise the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for complying with the request when there was an entire process going on and bringing that process to a close came. its natural end as I understand it,” Raskin said.
He would not directly confirm that the foreign national named in the memo sought by Republicans is from Ukraine.
The White House also pushed back, calling the Republican-led investigation “baseless” and “politically motivated.”
Last week, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy supported Comer’s contemptuous threat — saying he was “willing” to move forward with the charges.
“We have jurisdiction over the FBI, which seems to act as if we don’t,” McCarthy said.
The FBI’s latest backstop also comes after a second whistleblower from the IRS came forward, claiming he was sidelined by the Hunter Biden investigation when he spoke about the president’s son receiving preferential treatment.
The agent, who has not been identified, says he was recently fired without explanation after working on the Hunter Biden investigation since 2018, according to documents sent to congressional leaders by DailyMail.com.
FBI Director Chris Wray has until May 30 to deliver the document to Republicans in Congress
“The information provided by a whistleblower raises concerns that then-Vice President Biden may have engaged in a bribery scheme involving a foreigner,” Comer said.
This is the second whistleblower to report on the matter in recent days.
According to documents, he informed Congress last week about the backlash he was experiencing for acting as a whistleblower and alleged unfair retaliation.
He sent an email to senior IRS commissioner Daniel Werfel and several other officials in recent weeks claiming he was ousted because he was concerned that the Justice Department was acting “inappropriately” in its handling of the investigation into the son of the president.
His complaint comes days after the Justice Department removed the entire team investigating Hunter Biden’s tax returns, according to attorneys representing a first-time oversight whistleblower: Gary Shapley.
Shapley testified before the GOP-led Ways and Means Committee for six hours, answering all questions from both Republicans and Democrats, DailyMail.com learned.