EDITOR’S NOTE, February 16, 2024: On February 15, Justice Department Counsel David Weiss indicted FBI informant Alexander Smirnov on two felony counts of making a false statement and creating a false and fictitious record for claims made to the bureau. The charges are in relation to June 2020 FD-1023 form alleging President Joe Biden and son Hunter Biden received a combined $10 million in a bribery scheme involving the Ukrainian energy company, Burisma.
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NBC’s Today decided on Monday to further draw out the soap opera of now-ex-Congressman George Santos (R-NY) after he was overwhelmingly expelled Friday from Congress and use it as proof of “deep divisions within the GOP” and use it as a jumping off point to bash the impeachment inquiry of President Biden as a waste of time given there’s “no hard evidence” of malfeasance.
Co-host Savannah Guthrie boasted in a tease of “Republicans facing more infighting on Capitol Hill” while Nobles bragged that Santos being forced out came “at a time when Congress has a lot to get done” and “revealed deep divisions within the GOP ahead of a busy sprint to the end of the year where Congress is hoping to pass several important pieces of legislation, including aid to Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, as well as a border security package.”
“Those negotiations are making little progress. So instead, House leadership is focusing on something else,” Nobles huffed, referring to impeachment.
After a soundbite from Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) saying the House has “a duty to pursue the facts where they lead,” Nobles argued Republicans are focusing on an impeachment inquiry that’s “already well underway” instead of topics such as Israel and the U.S. border.
Nobles, of course, had to use his variation of “no evidence” to dismiss any and all inklings of Biden family corruption: “Republicans accusing the President and his family of corrupt business deals, but so far, they’ve produced no hard evidence to back up their claims. For his part, the President has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.”
Take one look at stories this fall such as here and here from our Geoffrey Dickens and Nobles argument could be assigned a pants-on-fire ruling. For example, the House Oversight Committee said on November 1 that now-President Biden received $40,000 laundered from brother Jim Biden via the Chinese Communist Party-linked CEFC China Energy.
Another concerning find Nobles would want to look at is the fact that Biden used a pseudonym for over 82,000 e-mails, including one about Hunter’s meeting with then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
In September, Dickens flagged earlier scandals that included Hunter Biden’s business partner Eric Schwerin as having visited the Obama White House 19 times and the allegation that Biden received $5 million from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma.
This, along with dozens of other revelations in recent years, have seen the light of day on NBC or any of the broadcast networks and their flagship morning and evening shows.
Instead, Nobles resorted to more mockery: “That inquiry was launched without a....but now Republicans are having trouble enforcing high-profile subpoenas of witnesses, like the President’s son, Hunter Biden.”
With a formal vote expected, Nobles insinuated it wouldn’t be because of anything discovered about Biden family corruption on a massive, global scale enveloping the current President.
Instead, you see, Nobles proclaimed it’s to placate some in the House GOP: “The move to formalize impeachment comes as the right wing members and Speaker Mike Johnson’s ranks are getting increasingly antsy his leadership is not conservative enough.”
To see the relevant transcript from December 4, click “expand.”
NBC’s Today
December 4, 2023
7:01 a.m. Eastern [TEASE][ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Republican Infighting]
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Republicans facing more infighting on Capitol Hill and on the campaign trail with the first presidential contest just six weeks away now.
(....)
7:09 a.m. Eastern
GUTHRIE: And, in the meantime, House Republicans are moving toward a vote on a formal impeachment inquiry of President Biden.
(....)
7:09 a.m. Eastern
RYAN NOBLES The fallout from his short time in office continues, at a time when congress has a lot to get done.
(....)
7:10 a.m. Eastern
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Biden Impeachment Inquiry]
NOBLES: But the vote that led to his removal revealed deep divisions within the GOP ahead of a busy sprint to the end of the year where Congress is hoping to pass several important pieces of legislation, including aid to Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, as well as a border security package. Those negotiations are making little progress. So instead, House leadership is focusing on something else.
SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA) [on 11/29/23]: We have a duty to pursue the facts where they lead.
NOBLES: The impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden is already well underway, with Republicans accusing the President and his family of corrupt business deals, but so far, they’ve produced no hard evidence to back up their claims. For his part, the President has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. That inquiry was launched without a vote under former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, but now Republicans are having trouble enforcing high-profile subpoenas of witnesses, like the President’s son, Hunter Biden. They acknowledge a formal vote would help move that forward.
JOHNSON [on FNC’s Fox & Friends Saturday, 12/02/23]: A formal impeachment inquiry vote on the floor will allow us to take it to the next necessary step and I think it’s something we have to do at this juncture.
NOBLES: The move to formalize impeachment comes as the right wing members and Speaker Mike Johnson’s ranks are getting increasingly antsy his leadership is not conservative enough. And the Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, said that he plans to put the supplemental aid package on the floor, perhaps as early as this week, but if it does not include a border package that some Republicans can support, it likely cannot pass. Savannah?
GUTHRIE: All right. Ryan, thank you.
