Blinken and Kerry have had a long working
relationship. Blinken was deputy secretary of state
under Secretary of State Kerry during the Obama
administration. During those years, Kerry’s stepson,
Chris Heinz, was a business associate of Hunter
Biden’s. Heinz partnered with Hunter Biden in a
Chinese investment firm, BHR Partners. Heinz
allegedly parted ways with Hunter Biden after the
president’s son took the position on Burisma’s board.
James Comer Threatens Subpoena on John Kerry’s Role in Biden Admin
House Committee on Oversight Chair James Comer (R-KY) on Tuesday issued a final letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken demanding all documents and information related to Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s role within the Biden Administration.
Since 2021, Republicans have questioned what duties and responsibilities Kerry actually holds.
On three separate occasions, Comer has requested Blinken provide transparency about Kerry’s role, but those requests have been ignored. Blinken’s failure to provide the requested information has caused Comer to threaten a subpoena.
Blinken and Kerry have had a long working relationship. Blinken was deputy secretary of state under Secretary of State Kerry during the Obama administration. During those years, Kerry’s stepson, Chris Heinz, was a business associate of Hunter Biden’s. Heinz partnered with Hunter Biden in a Chinese investment firm, BHR Partners. Heinz allegedly parted ways with Hunter Biden after the president’s son took the position on Burisma’s board.
John Kerry, U.S. special presidential envoy for climate, speaks during a media roundtable in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Monday, Sept. 5, 2022. (Linh Pham/Bloomberg)
Joe Biden and Kerry have also had a long relationship in Washington, DC. Joe Biden and Kerry served in the Senate together for two decades. Kerry was the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee when Joe Biden became vice president.
In 2020, Biden named Kerry as his climate envoy, a position of Cabinet rank that comes with access to both the State Department and the White House, where he is a part of the National Security Council.
“As we previously wrote, Envoy Kerry is engaging in activities that skirt congressional authority, threaten foreign policy under the guise of climate advocacy, and could undermine our economic health,” Comer wrote to Blinken.
“Yet, Envoy Kerry and his office are refusing to be transparent about their activities, spending, and staffing with the Committee—and the American people,” Comer added.
Comer demanded Blinken produce the following:
- All documents and communications regarding elements of the FY21, FY22, and FY23 budgets of the SPEC [Special Presidential Envoy for Climate], including those discussed off the record;
- A list of all individuals present at any discussions where elements of the FY21, FY22, and FY23 budgets of the SPEC were discussed, whether on or off the record;
- A full list, including names, titles, and salaries of all individuals currently and previously employed by the office of the SPEC, as well as all ethics and financial disclosures of those individuals;
- All documents and communications between any individual or individuals within the office of the SPEC and any third party, including but not limited to any environmental advocacy group or foreign government official; and
- All documents and communications regarding domestic and international travel of the SPEC.
“If the Department refuses to produce documents and information on this matter, the Committee will have to consider other means, including compulsory process,” Comer added.
RELATED — WATCH: Senator Dan Sullivan: “I Rise Today” “To Call for the Resignation of John Kerry” (from 2021 with shocking revelation about Kerry)
C-SPANRELATED — WATCH: Kerry Says Climate Is the Most Important Issue with China
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.
Again, why should we care about these shenanigans? Because these are three more episodes in an ever-widening and never-ending pattern of corruption and influence-peddling from Biden, his family, and his administration.
What Biden et al have done and continue to do is unbelievable. What's next?
All the President's Relatives
Harken back to 20 January 2021 when the doddering fool who occupies the Bully Pulpit was inaugurated. He appointed Nicholas McQuaid, a White House lawyer during the Obama presidency, as Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division.
Why should we care? McQuaid was a colleague of Chris Clark, the lawyer Hunter Biden hired in December 2020 to assist with his federal tax problems. A month later Joe Biden appointed McQuaid to oversee the agency that began its investigation of Hunter's tax situation in 2018.
Does Joe's timing look suspicious? Do you think McQuaid influenced the Hunter Biden tax investigation? Why revisit this issue?
Because it has become current. As Matt Steib says, "It's Raining Hunter Biden News." Federal prosecutors have considered charging Hunter Biden with a felony count of tax evasion. That consideration is now causing frustration "within the FBI about the amount of time prosecutors are spending weighing possible criminal charges against first son Hunter Biden for alleged tax evasion."
In addition, an IRS whistleblower, a criminal supervisory special agent who has been overseeing an ongoing case involving Hunter Biden's tax returns, alleges that Hunter Biden got special treatment in the form of "political interference and improper handling of the case by the Biden administration."
The whistleblower is seeking protection so he can publicly testify to Congress. He says he has proof that Merrick Garland, Biden's AG, lied to Congress while under oath when he insisted the Hunter Biden investigation was free from political interference and that the attorney in charge had full autonomy.
Joe Biden dismissed the allegations that the investigation had been influenced by politics.
Here's another current Biden item. Recall, if you will, the infamous 'Russian Disinformation' letter, the one signed by fifty-one former intelligence types. Joe Biden's presidential campaign prompted former acting CIA Director Mike Morell to 'help Biden' by having fifty colleagues sign a letter falsely claiming that damning e-mails from Hunter Biden's laptop published by The NY Post were 'Russian disinformation.'
We learned, as of last Thursday, about the source of the letter. Former CIA deputy director Michael Morell (a potential CIA director under Biden), in private sworn testimony, told the House Judiciary Committee that Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, when serving as an adviser to papa Joe Biden's 2020 campaign, contacted the CIA after the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop were published in the NY Post on 17 October 2020. On the laptop was an email suggesting Hunter had introduced his Ukrainian business partner to his father, then-Vice President Biden. Morell testified that he invented the letter to help Vice President Biden... because I wanted him to win the election.' Until Blinken's call, Morell said had no intention of writing any letter exonerating Biden. But he acknowledged that the conversation with Blinken 'triggered... that intent.' The result of Blinken's contact was a letter from former intelligence officials saying the Post story had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."
Morell gathered signatures from 51 former intelligence officials, including four other former CIA directors, two of whom were John Brennan and Leon Panetta. He then sent an email to Nick Shapiro (former deputy chief of staff to Brennan) that the Biden campaign desired the letter go to a particular reporter at the Washington Post, and to the Biden campaign as well. Shapiro subsequently took the letter to Politico, which published it on 19 October under the heading, 'Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former officials say.'
Aside: the Politico people are showing what hypocrites they are. They remain silent in the face of conclusive evidence they published incorrect information. Will they ever print a retraction? I'm not holding my breath.
The letter was used by Joe Biden during the debate with Donald Trump to stave off accusations (which, we have learned, were factual) about his involvement in his family's international influence-peddling schemes, many of which had amassed millions of dollars from China and Ukraine while he was vice president.
Morell testified that after the 22 October debate, Steve Ricchetti, chairman of the Biden campaign, phoned to thank him for writing the letter. The call was organized by fellow signatory Jeremy Bash (Leon Panetta's former chief of staff, now an MSNBC security analyst appointed by President Biden to a role on his Intelligence Advisory Board), "who I work with at Beacon [Beacon Global Strategies] and who is active politically."
Republicans in both houses were quite annoyed by Morell's disclosure. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), called the letter, "'a political operation' that 'became the basis for suppressing the story and keeping it from the American people just days before the most important election that we have, the election for president of the United States." He added, "It is apparent that the Biden campaign played an active role in the origins of the public statement, which had the effect of helping to suppress the Hunter Biden story and preventing American citizens from making a fully informed decision during the 2020 presidential election..."
The State Department has refused to comment about Morell's claim. Spokesman Vedant Patel said, "That is not a State Department issue."
Here's another bit of current Biden news. House Oversight Committee Chairman Representative James Comer (R-KY) said last Friday that, "...multiple members of the Biden family were involved in 'shady' overseas dealings and labeled them 'tax cheats.'" Comer continued, "...let me reiterate this: it's the Biden family. It's not just Hunter Biden and Joe Biden. It's multiple members of this family that have been receiving questionable sums of money for reasons that we haven't yet determined. But I can tell you, it's all pointing back to Joe Biden and as I said on Sean Hannity's show the other day, the walls are closing in on the Biden family. It's not just the president's son. It's the entire family, including the President of the United States."
Again, why should we care about these shenanigans? Because these are three more episodes in an ever-widening and never-ending pattern of corruption and influence-peddling from Biden, his family, and his administration.
What Biden et al have done and continue to do is unbelievable. What's next?
Comer: There’s Not Going to Be Anybody Left for a Biden Christmas Picture if the DOJ Did Its Job
During an appearance on FNC’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” Rep. James Comer (R-KY), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, suggested jail time was warranted for the Biden family’s alleged misdeeds.
He told host Maria Bartiromo the Department of Justice was not doing its job investigating the Biden family.
“So, the lawyers for Hunter Biden meeting with the DOJ this upcoming week,” Bartiromo said. “Do you expect Hunter Biden to get indicted? Do you expect other family members to have a target on their back or not? Or will this DOJ just ignore it all?”
“Well, they’re in a pickle here, especially now with the IRS whistleblower,” Comer replied. “I mean, there’s no rhyme or reason why Hunter Biden shouldn’t have been indicted years ago, even before the last presidential election. But one of the challenges that I have learned that the Department of J[ustice], if there are any legitimate, serious people left in the DOJ that are really trying to do the right thing, is, what do you do with this many family members of the president?”
“I mean, there’s not going to be anybody left for a Christmas picture if the DOJ did their job and went in there and indicted everyone that has any type of fingerprints involved in this influence peddling scheme,” he continued. “I mean, it’s the entire family.”
Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor
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