US president's son Hunter Biden defies congressional subpoena

Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden has defied a congressional subpoena to appear privately for a deposition before Republican investigators who have been digging into his business dealings, insisting he would only testify in public.

The Democratic president's son slammed the GOP-issued subpoena on Wednesday for the closed-door testimony, arguing that information from those interviews can be selectively leaked and manipulated.

"Republicans do not want an open process where Americans can see their tactics, expose their baseless inquiry, or hear what I have to say," Hunter Biden said outside the Capitol in a rare public statement. "What are they afraid of? I am here."

"My father was not financially involved in my business," younger Biden said.

"Not as a practicing lawyer, not as a board member of [Ukrainian gas giant] Burisma, not in my partnership to Chinese private businessmen, not in my investments at home nor abroad."

GOP Representative James Comer of Kentucky, chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, has said Republicans expect "full cooperation" with the private deposition.

Comer and Representative Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who leads the House Judiciary Committee, told reporters later on Wednesday that they will begin looking at the contempt of Congress proceedings in response to Hunter Biden's lack of cooperation.

"He just got into more trouble today," Comer said.

For months, Republicans have pursued an impeachment inquiry seeking to tie President Biden to his son's business dealings.

So far, GOP lawmakers have failed to uncover evidence directly implicating the elder Biden in any wrongdoing.

President Biden has avoided going into details of his only surviving son's legal woes, but has long expressed his support for him as a father.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president was familiar with what his son would say. "I think that what you saw was from the heart, from his son," she said. "They are proud of their son."

'illegitimate exercise'

Democrats have been united against the Republican impeachment push, saying it's "an illegitimate exercise" merely meant to distract from GOP chaos and dysfunction.

But questions have arisen about the ethics surrounding the Biden family’s international business, and lawmakers insist their evidence paints a troubling picture of "influence peddling" in their business dealings, particularly with clients overseas.

"There is no evidence to support the allegations that my father was financially involved in my business because it did not happen," Hunter Biden said.

Separately, Hunter Biden is facing criminal charges in two states from a special counsel overseeing a long-running investigation.

He is charged with firearm counts in Delaware, alleging he broke laws against drug users having guns in 2018, a period when he has acknowledged struggling with addiction.

Special counsel David Weiss also filed new charges and nine new tax counts last week, alleging Hunter Biden schemed to avoid paying about $1.4 million in taxes over a three-year period.

Later on Wednesday, the House was expected to authorise the impeachment inquiry into the president.

House Republicans hope a vote to formalise their investigation will help their legal standing when enforcing subpoenas to Hunter Biden and other Biden family members.

"Mr Biden’s counsel and the White House have both argued that the reason he couldn’t come for a deposition was because there wasn’t a formal vote for an impeachment inquiry," Jordan told reporters. "Well, that’s going to happen in a few hours."

He added, "And when that happens, we’ll see what their excuse is then."